Soul Requiem: Return to Hinata Sou
by Beyond the Bounds-Zenithos
Summary: Postseries.A young man,plagued by strange nightmares of memories he’s never experienced,one day discovers an ancient card in an antique store. Following the card and nightmares,he finally finds himself at a ruined inn...chp3shinxkei & chp4MotxKei up
1. Chapter 1

Soul Requiem: Return to Hinata Sou

Chp1: Nightmares

AU. A young man, plagued by strange nightmares of memories he's never experienced, one day discovers an ancient card in an antique store. Following the card and nightmares, he finally finds himself at a ruined inn…the Hinata Sou.

Hey, it's me again. Just another idle doodle that I want to post here. I know I've been posting a lot of stories here lately but I've decided to put Love Hina: Children of the Exodus and Final Hina Fantasy on hold for a while (unless a few people explicitly asks me to continue them) so I could concentrate on Love Hina Alternative and New Mobile Suit: Project Gundam Hina Eternity. This story? I don't know…just felt like writing it. If you think it's worth continuing, please tell. Reviews are highly appreciated, off course.

Who knows, there might be romance. Any ideas for the pairings? I still haven't made up my mind on who to pair up Keitarou with. So, I'll just leave it up to the readers. What kind of fanfic do you want it to be? another MotxKei? A KeixShin? or perhaps a KeixNar. Or any other pairing you could think of, as long as it's not Haruka (I don't do those kinds of stories).

Disclaimer: I don't own Love Hina. Everything else here belongs to me.

* * *

His vision was jerkily blurry, as if there was a broken TV set stuck to his head. The sounds he heard screeched and scratched from time to time, as if what he was seeing was a really bad television transmission.

"Hey, Kei-kun…did you hear? When two people who love each other go to Tokyo-U, they will live happily ever after…" A voice echoed through his skull. Children's laughter rang in his ears, echoing around, making it sound sinister rather than child-like. Suddenly everything, the vision and sounds, screeched.

"Promise me, ok, Kei-kun?" a blurry image of a little girl in the sunshine appeared. (SCREECH)

"How can we let him stay? This is Hinata Sou! An all girls dorm! He's a male! A male in an all girls dorm! That's unheard of!" Another voice, this time an angry one, echoed in the distance.

"He's a Tokyo-U student, we could get him to tutor us…" (SCREECH)

"Hey, what's a special ED ID?" a voice echoed, before everything started spinning. (SCREECH)

The words "YOU LIAR" echoed through his head. Everything went pitch black before hundreds of sketchbooks fell through the darkness, glowing.

"Hey, retaker! Still alive!" everything flashed around him. Visions shot through his head. Voices, many many voices, whispered and clashed around him, turning into a one solid sound. In between he heard small snatches of words, with seemingly corresponding visions.

"You know…that's just a simple Trig question…did you even try the question first or did you just look at it and say 'I can't do it'" A female voice asked. It was a traditional looking room. Two people were sitting in a kotatsu, books and paper were spread all over the kotatsu's surface. Everything was blurry, as usual. Everything blurred out for a moment before coming back into focus, though he felt he missed something in between.

"She definitely remembers! I can just imagine it…she's fighting hard to fulfill that childhood promise…even if it's a stupid promise like 'I'll see you in Toudai' or any such promise…" the female voice continued. (FLASH)

"I promise I'll get into Tokyo U, I'll turn back the lies, I promise. So Happy Birthday…I promise you, I'll get into Tokyo U…" The scene was rather dark…there seemed to be a collection of people on top of a small wooden structure. A small girl suddenly ran away. Everyone else suddenly ganged up on him and blasted him away into the darkness. (FLASH)

"You annoying, perverted, lecherous male…DIE!" Everything spun. (FLASH)

"Hey, what about me and you go out together some time…I guess we could let the rent slide, hey?" (FLASH)

"Mecha Tama Mk 1, GO!" (FLASH)

"Keitarou, what am I to do!" There was a memory…of tears…raven black hair…a shuddering figure he wanted so badly to embrace…(FLASH) "Without my sword…I'm nothing…" That's not true…he knew that's not true…but why? What is this? (FLASH) "I'm sorry, I've decided to stay at the Hinata Sou. Not only will I pass next year, I'll continue to practice my sword skills." The seaside? Everything was shining bright…then something exploded…(FLASH) "I LOVE KEITAROU!" WHAT? Who's Keitarou? (FLASH)

"Hey, Keitarou are you really going away? Then before we die, can I ask for something?" Something told him this was not the time for such questions. "Give me a kiss. You've already kissed Motoko once." WHAT! And who on earth is Motoko anyway? If I've kissed someone, I'd certainly remember! (FLASH)"Nyahahahahaha! We meet again Keitarou!" A vision of flashing lights fleeting underneath him…he's flying? What! He looked up and saw a young girl in a flowing native costume. HUH? "Hey, there's Hinata Sou!" (FLASH)

"Welcome…Oneechan…to Hinata Sou…" (SCREECH!) Back in pitch black darkness…more sketchbooks fell…this time accompanied by…dolls? Squirrel dolls? The word 'promise' and 'yakusoku' echoed through the darkness. Suddenly, a vertical line of light flashed down one side of the darkness. A door slid open slowly…bringing light into the darkness. Beyond was…what was that?

Strange ornate symbols flashed all around him…flashes of light flew around him in 4 intricate orbits, before slowing down and forming…cards? Then everything flashed bright once more…

* * *

"GASP!" a young man woke up suddenly, panting and gasping for breath. He looked down at the alarm clock beside him…4.45 AM in the morning…he was sweating all over. He raised a hand to his head and ran a hand through his messy black hair. "What…was that all about? What a strange…nightmare…"

My name is Hayamura Takato, a freshman in Mahora Senior High. Today…I had one of the strangest dreams I've ever had…it felt as if…I was someone…completely different…as if I was living someone else's memories…who was that guy…now I've completely forgotten his name…and who were all those people?

Takato got up and walked over to the window. Everything was still dark outside. The street lights were shimmering in the distance. The moon glowed above…giving just enough light for him to make out the Sora Hoshu crater out in the distance. Even from here it seemed gigantic.

"Hmmm, Oniichan? You're up?" A voice asked from behind him. He looked around, trying to focus at the gloaming darkness. A small figure sat on the second shelf of his futon closet, rubbing its eyes.

"Hikari-chan, sorry I woke you." Takato whispered.

"Bad dreams, niichan?" The small brown haired girl asked, rubbing her eyes sleepily.

"Yeah, just another bad dream…" Takato sighed. "It's ok, go back to sleep. I didn't wake up Himari-chan too, did I?"

"No, oneechan's still asleep…" The girl leaped down from the futon closet and walked up to her brother. "Did you say your prayers before bed, niichan?"

"Yes, yes, Hikari-chan, I did. Don't worry." Takato embraced his little sister and shepherded her back to the futon closet. "And I still can't understand what's so comfortable about a futon closet. Why can't you two just spread out a futon on the tatami."

"It's comfy, niichan, why don't you try it sometime?" She giggled, scrambling back into the futon closet. "Wanna join us?"

"I think…you guys will need all the space you could get…" Takato said, pushing his little sister in and tucking her in. "Goodnight, Hikari-chan."

"Goodnight, niichan," Hikari said, stifling a yawn, before closing the closet sliding door. Takato left the room and went to the bathroom for a quick wash.

"Seems like it's gonna be another long day…"

* * *

5.00 AM…Takato decided to go out for a quick morning walk. He set out with a brisk pace towards an area of town called Market Avenue. The chilly winds bit through his face. Out of reflex, he pulled his coat tighter around himself. He knew the stores would all be closed, but he decided he'd wait until the 'Corner Antiques' store opened. His friend, Sakura, normally opened her store a little earlier than usual, around 5.30…pretty much cause she didn't have much to do and because she wanted to get some customers in before she had to run off to school. She lived there with her grandfather, an old anthropologist and archaeologist who was said to have studied under a great master back when he was young.

Today, She opened up her store a bit earlier than usual. "Oh, ohayo Takato. You're up early today." She said, her breath coming out in puffs of vapour, as she opened up the store's metal sliding doors. "Need something?" Her brown, slightly orange hair was picked up by the gentle morning breeze.

"Ohayo, Sakura-chan. I just need a new cell voucher card. I just ran out of credit the other day." Takato said.

"Sure, just wait while I get this open…there we go." Sakura went in and gestured for him to follow her. "Come in."

He walked into the darkness and stopped by the door…it was unsafe to walk through the store in the dark, with all the fragile antiques lying around everywhere. Sakura confidently made her way through the darkness and switched on the lights, illuminating the centuries worth of forgotten treasures now stored in the small curio store. Business hasn't been good, lately, apparently, and Sakura somehow managed to convince her grandfather to start selling hand phone credit voucher cards and a few cheap souvenirs to keep the store going.

"Okay, just a 50.000 yen card, that will do." Takato said, opening his wallet.

"Here you go." Sakura ducked under the counter and came back up with the card. A telephone suddenly rang in the back. "Oh, excuse me, I'll be back in a second." She quickly navigated the cluttered back area and made her way to the phone.

Meanwhile, Takato decided to look around a bit. The store was filled to bursting with tons of odd stuff. There was everything from the ancient 15th century (so it claims) up to stuff from the recently passed 21st century, from before the war. He's been in the store quite a number of times, so he's pretty much used to the cluttered interior. As he looked around, his elbow accidentally knocked over a box. It fell with a clatter onto the floor. The lid fell open and a number of cards fell out. Along with it fell an old sketchbook.

In panic, Takato quickly stooped to gather the cards. But as he touched one, his vision flashed and screeched again, just like his nightmare.

"…I love you…Keitarou…" a voice whispered softly. "I always will…"

"Huh!" Takato recoiled and stood back, panting. "What…" He held his head. "Uhh…must be lack of sleep…" He crouched again and tentatively reached out for the cards…nothing happened this time.

"that's…weird…" He gathered the cards and deposited them on the counter along with the wooden box…which he noticed was more like a thick volumed book. As he placed the cards back in he took a look at the cards. They were all blank white cards.

"Ok…I think…I'm just tired…my imagination must be running overtime again…" He breathed out slowly. But he couldn't get over the freakiness…why blank white cards? In a box that looked so ornately designed? He quickly placed the cards back in the box, took his telephone voucher, left the 50.000 yen note and a message saying 'see you in school', then left the store in a hurry. The sketchbook was left lying on the floor, open to a particular page. It was a drawing of an old traditional Japanese building, with sakura blossoms flying across it.

"That…was way freaky…" He sighed. Then he looked up as something cold touched his forehead. Small white flakes of snow swirled down around him as the first rays of sunlight came up over the horizon. "Better get home…gotta take the twins to school."

* * *

He and his sisters lived in a spacious apartment in a suburb in Tokyo-6, a prefecture once known as Kanagawa. His parents lived away somewhere in the EU, working. They left him in Japan, believing it would be better for him to continue his studies there. His sisters were sent over just recently as they had just reached 5th grade and their parents thought it would be better for them to take the national primary school graduation examination and go to a good junior high in Japan.

When he got there, his sisters were already waiting for him with breakfast. Scrambled eggs and toast. "Ohayo, oniichan! Did you just go out for a walk?" his sister, Himari asked. "Hikari told me you were having nightmares again."

"Ohayo, it wasn't that bad." Takato said. "Hikari-chan, you tell-tale!" He playfully knocked Hikari on the head.

"Ow…" Hikari cried. "I'll get you for that, niichan!" She started chasing Takato around the room.

"All right, better get moving children, it's time for school." Himari said, muffled by the piece of toast in her mouth, slinging her backpack on her back. "Let's go!"

"Right, right!" Takato said, picking up two pieces of toast laden with scrambled eggs. He picked up his school bag, turned around, and gave Hikari a dekopin (flick), sending her falling backwards onto the tatami.

"H…hey! Not fair!" Hikari shouted, getting up.

"Last one to school is a loser!" Takato shouted, running out the front door.

"H…hey! Niichan!" Hikari shouted.

"sigh…" Himari sighed, following her siblings out into the corridor, before locking the door behind her.

* * *

Later on…that afternoon…

"hmm, the twins have probably gone home…man, baseball can take a lot out of you…" Takato stretched as he stood outside his school. Most of the students had gone home. He had remained for extra-curricular activities. He took out his phone and dialed up Himari to check up on them.

"Sorry, your phone has run out of credit…please refill…you could…" a female voice said over the phone.

"Oh, I forgot to refill it…" Takato took out his credit voucher card…"huh?" it was a blank card. "Oh…hell…" He pocketed his phone and sighed. "Darn…how could I have taken this…" he flipped over the card twice…he almost dropped the card out of shock. There, on what was supposed to have been a blank side, was a neat handwritten message in cursive.

"oh man…I don't like this…" He read the message. "I'll be waiting for you…at Hinata Sou…"

"Hinata Sou?" He looked up at the hill overlooking Kanagawa…an old ruined building stood there, slowly gathering snow. "Didn't that girl in the dream refer to the Hinata Sou…" He looked back down at the card…it was blank again. "Okay…now this is getting a little too freaky…"

* * *

"Sakura-chan, what exactly are these cards?" Takato asked his friend, later on in the antiques store.

"I don't know, actually…" Sakura said, looking down at the box and the cards. "According to my catalogue…they date back to the early 21st century, right before the war started." She said, consulting her catalogue. "What happened, Takato? You just disappeared this morning and I found the box on the counter with a message. Did something happen? Why are you all interested in these cards all of a sudden?"

"I…I don't know…Sakura-chan…" Takato said, looking down at the cards. "Do you know where exactly these came from?"

"No…there isn't any information regarding this box and the cards…" Sakura said, shaking her head. "I don't think these served any purpose…probably just blank cards to fill up the box…the box looks like a card holder anyway."

"Right…do you have any information of the Hinata Sou?" Takato asked.

"Hmmm, let me check." Sakura said, taking a stool and checking the top shelves of a tall cabinet. She came back down carrying a gigantic file holder marked 1980-2050. "If there's anything historical then it would go in here." She flicked through the files. "Ah, Hinata Sou… apparently it was an inn at some stage, though it was converted to an all girls dorm in the late early 1990s…there are records of it having gotten blown up a number of times. Then there are records of a wedding that even went in the newspapers…I can't really make out who got married here…hey, here's the name of the manager at that time, Keitarou Urashima. Hmm…I can't believe that this is all about that old building up there on the hill. Hey, Takato?"

Takato was staring off into space. "Keitarou…Urashima?" He whispered. "Sakura, anything else about this person!"

"Hmmm…failed Tokyo-u entrance exams 3 times, got in on the fourth try. Became an apprentice archaeologist…there are many articles regarding the stuff he discovered on Pararakelse island and Molmol…and he went on one last excavation in 2013…a few months before the asteroid strike. Nothing else…though it might be worth noting that the Hinata Sou got hit pretty badly during the Sora Hoshu impact. All of Kanagawa was decimated and half of Hinata hill forms what we now know as the Sora Hoshu crater." Sakura said.

"Tokyo-U…Keitarou Urashima…Hinata Sou…archaeologist…" Takato repeated. "Thanks, Sakura-chan. Hey, can I buy this card?" he showed Sakura the card he accidentally took. "I think I took it accidentally in my rush this morning….and ah, I need that voucher card too." He gestured at the voucher card that lay in the pile of blank cards on the counter.

"Oh, I couldn't charge you for that. Unless it has a clear historical record, our store can't sell it as an antique. You can take it, if you want. And all these too, off course." She gestured at the pile of blank cards. "Though would you mind paying for the box? It doesn't qualify as an antique cause of the lack of records, but at least as a souvenir of some sort?"

Takato left the store carrying a cardboard box that contained his newly purchased wooden card holder and a small number of blank cards. He actually counted…there were only about 8 cards in it, though there was a lot of empty space for more cards. He looked up at the decimated Hinata hill, then looked down at the one blank card he had taken that morning. He picked up his cell, refilled it, and phoned Hikari and Himari, telling them he'd come home rather late. Then he started running towards it…towards the Hinata Sou. He didn't know what he would find…if he would find anything at all…but something told him…something deep inside him told him, he had to go. At least to see it, to see it for himself, the Hinata Sou.

Will it be continued? I don't know. It depends on readers' opinion. Is it worth continuing? Don't forget to tell me your pairing preference. Please Review!


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: Return

This story is NOT a sequel to any of my current stories. Though it does borrow a few elements from my existing stories such as Market Avenue from Love Hina Alternative and a few daily events from Love Hina Children of the Exodus, it has completely nothing to do with those other stories, except the author and characters (including OCs) are the same.

Also, I seriously can't decide who the main female character is going to be. Any suggestions? It can be anyone from the Love Hina or Negima universe. Please tell.

Now, to reply to reviews!

Keitaro Dreamer: Thanks for the positive review. I always thought it's 'Keitarou'. My scanlation version of the Love Hina manga spells it that way, and I've been stuck with it, I guess. Sorry. But it's still read the same way, so what the heck, right? Thanks again for the review.

Slimjim27: Thanks for the positive review! It's a relief someone thinks it's ok. I wasn't too sure about it myself. Thanks a lot.

Bobboky: Thanks for the positive review. Hopefully this second chapter would give you a better idea of where exactly the story's heading. I remember you reviewed one of my earlier stories, was it Love Hina Children of the Exodus or Final Hina Fantasy?

Baretta Pakin Mailman: Thanks for the positive review. Irealize I do make quite a few grammar mistakes sometimes. I guess I should start getting my stories proof-read. Thanks again for the review.

* * *

Market Avenue…a desolate bare stretch of road with a few small stores on either side…some closed and boarded up…some waiting for opening hours. Takato walked through the slowly falling snow….straight towards the end of the road, the Hinata Sou. On one side he saw one old building…apparently the first story used to be some old western restaurant, while the second story used to be some old detective agency, now closed down for good. There was a lonely theatre on another side, now seeming gaunt and dead, draped by cold, cold snow. 

There was always snow on the ground. The landscape was always white with bare patches of grey where the snow had gotten swept away, revealing a patch of concrete or dead earth. It snows a few times a week, even in July. The meteor showers had left the earth a cold, dead planet. The biodome that spread over the sky above Takato was all that stood between the last places of human habitation and complete permafrost. It kept the temperature within the biodome at around 0-3 degrees centigrade all throughout the year, though it could rise to as warm as 5 or 6 around summer. Outside, the frosty winds blew over desolate chilly wastelands where temperatures would rise to -20 degrees centigrade in mid-summers and could drop to -40 in winters.

He finally reached the snow covered hill. It seemed like a misshapen cake with many dead eerily slanting sakura trees as decorations. The steps were badly damaged and misshapen…no one had bothered to repair them after the meteor strike and the war. Far to his right, the Sora Hoshu crater gaped wide open…a shallow bowl-like depression extending 2km to the south. The explosion had taken part of Hinata hill with it, blasting the rest into a slurring slide down the other side. It was amazing that remains of the old building still stood, ruined as it was.

He started to ascend the old, tumbled down steps. As he stepped on the first step, everything flashed…

"Hey…can you teach me?" The hill suddenly burst alive, everything was green…leaves and a few blossoms hung on the sakura trees…the steps were suddenly whole. But everything was blurry…somebody fix the receiver!

A girl stood on the steps above, looking back downwards. "Haven't you given up yet? Why do you want to go to Tokyo-U anyway? What's your purpose?" She asked, with a frown.

"Well, why do you want to go there?" A warm wind blew across the hill.

"Me?" The girl asked, suddenly lighting up. "I…" She let her hair down, which was previously tied up in pleats. "It's a secret!" She laughed, holding her tongue out. (FLASH)

The hills were dead again. The snow was back. The bitter winds bit back with a vengeance. "Huh?" Takato took his foot of the step in shock. "Something…tells me…I'd better turn back…right NOW!" he was about to turn back when suddenly, something caught his eye. It was a little girl, in a violet dress, standing some distance up the stairs. She stared down at him, before running back up the stairs.

"Right…lonely…restless spirit…ruined building…dead looking hill…mysterious ghostly hand writing on ominous white cards…and freaky visions every few minutes…why…why aren't I turning back?" Takato asked himself, as he again set foot on the steps. He held his breath as he set foot on the first step, but breathed a sigh of relief as nothing happened. "Okay…I'm going to have to see this through…" He steeled his will and ploughed on up the hill.

He paused for a moment as he reached the top of the arduous flight of stairs and looked around him, partly in awe, partly in shock. There, before him, stood the old, ruined inn. It's dark, dead windows looked down at him with a knowing deepness, as of something that was once sagely and full of wisdom and has now gone old and rotten. The old stone open area in front of the inn was cracked and damaged. Many jagged rocks had buried itself deep into the concrete.

Takato made his way through the open area towards the inn's entrance…but as he got midway, another flash obscured his vision.

"So…that's what happened. And now I'm the manager of this place. My name's Keitarou Urashima, nice to meet you all." The hill burst into bloom again. The inn was again proud and majestic, as it once was, beaming down at the collection of people below it.

"We won't allow it!" part of the group shouted, and leapt in assault. (FLASH)

"Okay…yet another one…I'm starting to understand this Keitarou guy…or at least I think it's him…" Takato muttered, trying to regain his balance. "Well, I've come this far…can't turn back now…" He went forwards towards the inn's entrance. The doors had been broken and thrown aside by some Herculean force. He entered the remains of the living room and whispered "excuse me?" suddenly the room swirled and another flash ensued.

"Okay, then welcome to the Hinata Inn!" A group of girls shouted. Everything was suddenly cozy and homely, Hinata Sou in its prime. (FLASH)

"Okay…first of all…Rayce, that thing doesn't move that way." This seemed to be another time. There was…water falling outside? So that's what they call 'rain'…he's never actually seen anything like it before. The living room was alight in the midst of the thundering gloom of the rain. There was a chessboard on the table, with two boys sitting opposite one another.

"What thing?" The boy named Rayce asked, innocently.

"The knight, it doesn't move that way." The other boy said, pointing at a piece.

"Second of all…the queen was on the other side of the board…how can you take out the queen with your knight, when both pieces haven't even moved." A voice said. Takato noticed that it was coming from the direction of the vision…so it was from him? Or whoever's memory it was…

"Hey, the rule book says knights can jump over pieces!" Rayce protested.

"It can…as long as it's moving in the specified L manner." The other boy explained, exasperated. Takato's vision went dark as the owner of the memory put a hand to his face and shook his head slowly. (FLASH)

The ruined living room appeared again before his eyes. The floorboards were all crumbling and rotting, some were missing. The furniture were all smashed, lined up against the north wall…probably the effects of the explosion. All he hoped was that he won't find any human remains. He ventured forth into the ruined inn. There were remains of an old wooden staircase, now collapsed and useless. Well, it wasn't as if there was a second floor to go to anyway. Most of the second floor had collapsed, presumably during the meteor strike. It was a wonder anything was left at all.

"This…was probably the kitchen…" Amongst the pile of rubble on one side stood an old kitchen sink, all cracked and smashed. There was the forlorn form of an old refrigerator, buried amongst the rubble. There was even an old kitchen knife by the sink and a few cracked dishes. "Amazing…it's been left like this for a whole century…" Takato whispered in awe. FLASH…

"That smells good…" Gentle aromas of sweet traditional home cooking wafted through the room. There was a gentle sizzling of something on the range. The refrigerator was open, someone was crouching in front of it, seemingly looking for something. There was a girl by the sink, skillfully chopping vegetables. A boy was standing beside her, by the range, tending the frying pan.

"Keitarou-sempai!" The girl dropped her knife and blushed, noticing the new presence.

The kid by the refrigerator, whirled around, "You know…we're kinda out of beer, eh? Oh, Keitarou. Whassup? The smell brought you down?"

"Aren't you a little too young to be drinking beer, Rayce?"

"Hey, Keitarou-sempai, can you tend this for a moment? I gotta go get the plates and stuff out." He smiled, winking and gesturing over at the girl who luckily didn't notice.

"Oh, right…gotcha Lee." (FLASH)

The debris returned…everything was again dead and dreary. Takato turned around and headed out into the rear courtyard. He felt that whatever he was looking for, he would only find it by venturing further. Now a fuzzy sound of laughter and shouts filled his head. There was a sound of distant footfalls on the wooden terraces. There was a sound of birds singing, trees sighing. Takato walked down onto the now desolate courtyard. There, amidst a few tumbledown debris, stood the little girl.

"I've been waiting for you…" The girl said, standing up.

"Who…are you?" Takato asked, venturing forwards. The little girl was still dressed in her violet dress. It was certainly not suited for the weather.

"You…don't remember…do you? But promises never die…you finally came." The little girl turned around and looked up at the pile of debris behind her.

"I…don't know why I came…can…you please…explain?" Takato ventured, sensing that this girl would probably leave out any other details, such as her identity. "And you might want to wear my jacket…it's rather cold."

"The dead don't feel cold…" The girl smiled. "All will be made clear…in time. You shall discover everything for yourself." The girl ran away into the gathering mist.

* * *

Author's note: For those of you who are interested in the ShinobuxKeitaro version, please cut off here and go straight to chapter 3 ShinobuxKeitaro version. Thank you.

* * *

"H…Hey!" Takato was about to run after her when something behind him exploded. He immediately fell forwards flat on the floor from the shock as something whirled through the air above him, slicing through the debris in front of him, before taking flight into the mist above. "What?" He looked around. Two dark shadows appeared amidst the dust and mist, their shapes growing more and more distinct. Takato scrambled onto his feet, ready to run.

Two figures materialized from the mist. One was a black haired boy, all dressed in black, probably around Takato's age. Beside him was a tall woman with very narrow eyes and a vacant expression, also in black. Her clothes were more or less a modernized version of the traditional ninja costume, with a tight jet black vest buttoned down the front with a grey long sleeved shirt underneath and a pair of black trousers. She raised one arm and neatly caught a rapidly spinning object that flew towards her. It was a gigantic kageshuriken.

"Toji?" Takato asked, seeing that the boy was a classmate of his.

"Finish him, Kaede, and bring the cards to me." The boy said calmly. The woman beside him flashed and disappeared, re-appearing only a split-second later in front of Takato, a kunai (Japanese ninja dagger) raised in one hand.

"Wha…!" Takato cried, raising a hand to his face out of reflex. This was it…he was certainly going to die. "Hikari…Himari…"

The wooden box in his hands suddenly shone bright. A flash of light ensued. The woman was suddenly knocked backwards, sliding a few meters back, leaving a deep trail in the snow. The bright flash of light subsided. A few sakura petals swirled around Takato as he opened his eyes. A card was spinning before him, shining bright. Beyond the blinding glare, in the middle of the swirling sakura petals, stood a girl, her back towards him, looking straight up, both arms extended sideways, as if taking in a deep, refreshing breath. Her hair shone in the pale light, flying with the gentle yet sharp gust of wind.

"It can't be…" The boy named Toji shielded his eyes from the glare.

"It's…" Kaede whispered.

"…I've been waiting for you…"

* * *

To be continued… 

I'm cutting the chapter short right there as here's where I'm going to have to decide who the main female character will be. Any ideas? Please tell.


	3. Chapter 3MotxKei version

Chapter 3: First Encounter KeixMot version.

Who are you, whom I so faintly hear?

What voice is this that speaks within me?

To who's fragile soul…

Do we sing this requiem?

* * *

Thanks for making it to chapter 3. This is a trial chapter. Basically I've written a MotokoxKeitarou version of the beginning, since only one reviewer has actually given me a pairing suggestion and it was for a MotxKei fic. If the reviews for this one are good, then I guess I'll continue the MotxKei version. It was actually fun to write. It's the first time I ever wrote a MotxKei fic and I find it quite a challenge, but it's fun. And as I wrote it, I started to see how much of a perfect couple the two can be… 

If anyone else comes to me with some other pairing idea, then I might put it into consideration and write another version. Ok, please review and tell me what you think about the MotxKei version. I'm also writing a ShinobuxKeitarou version right now, we'll see how that turns out.

Don't forget to check out the new chapters for Love Hina Alternative and New Mobile Suit Project Gundam Hina Eternity. By the way, Love Hina Children of the Exodus and Final Hina Fantasy will be re-written over the summer holidays, so stay tuned for more releases from Beyond the Bounds!All reviews are highly appreciated, thanks! And now, to reply to recent reviews!

Master-of-the-god: Thanks for the review. Also, thanks for the pairing suggestion. As you can see, this chapter's a trial run on the MotxKei version. I've never written a MotxKei story before so please tell me what you think. Thanks. Hope you enjoy it!

Desolatedking: Thanks for the review. Yes, Lee and Rayce are characters from my other stories. They've always appeared in all my stories from Love Hina Children of the Exodus to Final Hina Fantasy, and to the recent ones, Gundam Hina Eternity, Love Hina Alternative, and Soul Requiem. A few other of my original characters from other stories will be showing up as well, for example, Nata-chan in this chapter. Thanks again for the review, and hope you enjoy the new chapter.

Annoying Assasin: Thanks for the review. Hope you enjoy this chapter. And I think I've read one of your stories, though I can't remember the title. But I do recognize the pen name. Thanks again for the review!

Disclaimer: I don't own Love Hina or Negima. Everything else here belongs to me.

* * *

Her white hakama flashed bright under the blinding light. Her dark blue gi flowed with swirling breeze, in a slow dance together with the sakura petals. Her raven black hair flowed out, rippling and shining under the light. The card before Takato slowed down into a sedate spin, revealing the light green words on the dark green back, which said, "Magister Carta Magi Ultima" The card then slowly rotated to reveal the front. There was a picture of a lone swordswoman, one hand on her katana, the other on the sheath, standing ready in her hakama and gi. 

The girl stood still under the spiraling sakura petals, head upwards, hands spread outwards. Takato shielded his eyes as another flash consumed her. Something started materializing from the top downwards. It was a blinding white long-sleeved Japanese maiden's robe that slowly materialized over the hakama. The hakama itself was gradually turning black before obscured completely by the flowing maiden's robe. Her dark blue gi started to turn a bright white as the maiden's robe completed its materialization as it reached around knee length. A black glove materialized around her left arm while a long white katana materialized in her right arm. As the transfiguration was completed, an explosion of light engulfed the girl once again.

The flash subsided as the sakura petals blew away with a sudden gust of wind that picked up her long flowing maiden's robe, black hakama, and white gi. The card flashed and shook as a similar transfiguration took place across the card form down upwards, extending in a blinding flash across the surface of the card. It slowly rotated as it transfigured, revealing a change occurring across the back as well. The dark green back was turning silver, with the lighter silver words "Magister Carta Magi Takato Hayamura" slowly replacing the old light green words.

The card dropped into Takato's hands as the girl lowered her arms and face and looked at the snow beneath her. "I have returned…" She sighed "…it has been a long time…Keitarou…" . She looked up at Kaede and said, "Kaede Nagase…what a surprise…to see you here, once again."

"What an honour, to have the chance to fight the revered Motoko Aoyama of the Shinmei-ryu…" Kaede nodded. "This shall be an interesting fight."

"What! Stop kidding around, Kaede! Destroy them and take the cards!" Toji shouted, pointing at both Motoko and Takato.

"Very well master, but it is customary for us warriors to greet one another and formally challenge one another prior to a battle for honour." Kaede said, priming her stance, a kunai in each hand.

"Stand back, Keitarou." Motoko said. "Leave this one to me."

"Umm…are you referring to me, by any chance?" Takato ventured, seeing that there wasn't anybody else around.

"Off course I'm reffering to you, you idiot. Who else would have the same name around here?" Motoko snapped. "I've been away for so long, you could at least have the decency of treating matters seriously."

"But I'm not Keitarou…I'm Takato." Takato said.

"Huh? What!" Motoko asked, suddenly looking around. Kaede launched into an attack and aimed a slash at Motoko

"Impossible…a card evolution in as soon as the card was unleashed…" Toji muttered. "…so you really are a card master, Takato…"

Sparks flew out as Motoko's blade slammed into Kaede's twin daggers. Motoko switched around her foothold and gained some momentum forwards. At the same time, she cried out, "Shinmei-ryu! Ougi! Hi Ken Kamaitaichi!" the snow around her swirled around as a blast of wind blew Kaede into the sky, shredding through every undefended area.

Kaede's hands flashed as she quickly executed a complex number of ninja seals. "First dance…Rai no Sora!" She whispered, as she disappeared.

"Huh!" Motoko looked around, her katana sill raised. Suddenly, something blasted the snow on one side. Motoko looked around in that direction…but too late…Kaede was already in front of her, her hands fizzling with electricity.

"Second dance…Rai no Hana!" Kaede cried out. Motoko was blasted into a flying spin. Another Kaede was standing right behind her.

"A Kage-bunshin!" Motoko muttered, as she flew towards the second Kaede. The Kaede executed a few more seals and blasted her towards another Kaede bunshin. They blasted her around, rising into the air as they did so. Then one last Kaede flashed above her and hammered her down into the earth. She smashed into the ground, raising a large cloud of dust and smoke.

"Final dance, Rai no Mori!" All the Kaede Bunshins executed a number of ninja seals before firing a barrage of searing hot lightning bolts down at the cloud of smoke and dust. They all landed around the slowly dissipating cloud of dust, hands raised.

"Not bad…" Motoko said, wiping a bit of blood from her mouth. "But you didn't notice something…"

"de gozaru?" All 5 of the Kaedes looked around themselves. There were faint lines in the snow around them. "…a ki ring…de gozaru…"

"Precisely…" Motoko whispered. All the Kaedes immediately leaped up into the air. "futile…" She stood silent, looking up at the group of Kaedes, a slight breeze blowing by. "Shinmei-ryu…ougi…Hi-Ken Ho Kai No Rai Mei KIN!"

"Give me those cards!" Toji said, launching himself onto Takato.

"What's got into you, Toji!" Takato shouted, trying to heave him off. Toji clawed on his hands, trying to pry the card out of his hands. Takato held onto the card for dear life.

The ground shook as the faint lines that formed a huge Shinmei symbol of Divine Order shone bright. She stood amidst the symbol, sword raised. All the Kaedes shook their heads. Motoko noticed Toji trying to pry the card out of Takato's hands, before concentrating on her attack again.

"This is for Keitarou…and Hinata…" Motoko whispered, closing her eyes. She whirled around, letting her katana dig into the snow, forming a circle around her, before slashing it upwards. Thousands of phoenix shaped bolts of lightning coursed up towards the Kaedes. All of them attempted a shield genjutsu but ended up being blasted by the onslaught. A few stray bolts flew towards Toji and Takato. Takato kicked Toji up and flipped behind a rock. From the sound of it, he judged, Toji got hit by one of the bolts.

The ground and dead trees shook as the pillar of lighting bolts rose up to the dark clouds above, piercing it as a flock of birds took flight from the surrounding area.

"Damn…we'll be back, Takato. Just you wait. Next time, I'll let you have a taste of true horror!" Toji shouted, raising his Kaede card. "Kaede, return!" The card flashed as he started running away, smoke trailing behind him. "I shall return!"

Takato watched him as he fell over. "I swear I'll return!" He shouted, getting up, before running away again.

"What…was that all about?" Takato asked, looking around at Motoko. Motoko was sheathing her katana in the middle of the circle of singed earth.

"We have no time for jokes Keitarou." Motoko said, looking around. Then she frowned. "Hmmm…Keitarou…have you shrunk or something?"

"I'm not Keitarou, my name's Takato Hayamura!" Takato shouted in frustration. "I've already told you I'm not Keitarou." In truth, he was extremely confused.

"You do resemble him, though…" Motoko looked closely at him. "So…you're not Keitarou…" Motoko sighed, looking up at the ruined Hinata Sou. "I haven't been here in a long time…I haven't seen it since that day…" She looked up at the sky. A few birds flew across the desolate grey sky.

"So…you're my new master…" Motoko said, looking down at Takato and at the card in his hand. "Just a little kid, huh?"

"What do you mean, kid!" Takato asked, indignantly.

"Do you know anyone by the name of Keitarou, by any chance?" Motoko asked, walking towards the ruins.

"Eh? I've only heard stories of him. He was the manager of this place before the meteor strike and the war…that was exactly a century ago." Takato said, trying to keep up with Motoko's brisk pace.

"A century?" Motoko stopped dead in her tracks. "What year is this?"

"2113…" Takato said. He was surprised to see the proud looking samurai suddenly slump to her knees.

"2113…Keitarou…Hinata…" She whispered, looking up at the ruins. Then she looked down at her hands. "What…what went wrong? He…He promised…He promised…" She started sobbing. "He promised…that idiot promised…KEITAROU! HINATA!" She cried out. All the birds in the area took flight suddenly, surprised by the cry of anguish and sorrow.

"Keitarou…Hinata…" She sobbed, holding her face in her hands. Her battle attire started to disintegrate, disappearing into whisps of light, leaving her in her usual hakama and gi. Her katana also started to disappear, leaving sparkles in its wake.

"umm…can I…is there anything I can do?" Takato asked, cautiously, thinking he should try and do something to help. He held out a handkerchief.

Motoko took the handkerchief and wiped her tears. "Please…tell me…tell me everything you know about these two people…Urashima Keitarou and Urashima Hinata."

"I…I don't know much…" Takato stammered, finding himself at a loss. "I only know Urashima Keitarou was the landlord and dorm manager here between 1999 to 2113…he was a Tokyo-U student who became an archaeologist….then he left on one last expedition right before the meteor strike…that was the last anyone ever heard of him." Takato said. "I've never heard of Urashima Hinata…but I'm sure Sakura would have some archives on whoever she is…"

"…" Motoko got up and walked into the ruins. Takato followed closely, not knowing what else he was supposed to do. He was seriously confused…the girl in violet, the strange visions, the card, then his own classmate attacked him…then this really tall samurai of a girl appeared. But he could sense now was not the time for questions.

"Nothing left …not a single thing…" Motoko looked through the debris "Everything…gone…"

Takato kneeled down and took a look through the debris as well. He thought, perhaps he could help search? The girl seemed to be in a lot of pain, and she seemed to be looking for something. Then his hand touched something that looked like a frame. Everything flashed.

"Mo-chan! Nata-chan! Smile!" the camera's lights flickered as the timer counted down. A young woman was holding a young girl close. SNAP! That moment in time was frozen forever…FLASH

"Huh?" Takato lifted a few pieces of wood and plaster to uncover the frame. He picked up the small object and blew off the dust and plaster…behind the smashed glass were three people, smiling happily. A young woman and a young man, both hugging a little girl. "Hey, this looks like you…" He showed it to Motoko.

Motoko stood up immediately and walked over. She kneeled down by Takato and held the photograph. She took it out of its shattered frame and held it close. "Kei-kun…Nata-chan…" She whispered, as a few more tears fell. "Why…"

* * *

"Oh…the twins already left on their field trip…" Takato said, picking up a note on the table. they were back at Takato's apartment. "They'll be back day after tomorrow. Okay then…can I make you a cup of tea…or…" Takato looked over at Motoko who was sitting quietly on the sofa, looking down at the photograph. "Ok...tea it is then…" 

"Sugar? Milk?" Takato asked, setting down a tray of tea with two cups.

"They…they were my husband and daughter…" Motoko said.

"Oh…" Takato felt it was something obvious, but it was better to hear it straight from her.

"She…was…she was only 6 when it happened…I remember…I held her in my arms…when everything flashed…" Motoko said.

"Oh…" Takato poured out some tea.

"Everything…everything went bright…and warm…the sky shone bright…" Motoko whispered. "I kept her close to me…I didn't want to lose her…" She started sobbing again. "He promised me…that idiot promised me…"

"Please…" Takato held out his handkerchief again.

"Thank you…I never got your name…" Motoko said, looking up at Takato.

"I've already told you…" Takato sighed. "I'm Takato Hayamura."

"So…you're the new card master…" Motoko sighed. "I…I don't have much purpose left…but at least, I can help you…it was his wish to end all this…"

"I'm sorry, but I'm not very clear on what exactly is happening here…" Takato said. "Card master?"

"It's what we call a magister carta magus, or card mage. A card mage is one who has control over a number of cards which somehow allow him to summon people from the past…I don't quite understand how it works myself." Motoko said, pocketing her photograph.

"People from the past…as in...dead people?" Takato asked.

"Not exactly dead…how do I explain this…let's say our souls are sealed within the cards, and only card masters could unleash the seals and summon our souls into the physical realm." Motoko said. "My first…card master…was my own husband, Keitarou Urashima…"

"Oh?" Takato laid down a cup of tea in front of her. Motoko took a sip before continuing.

"Yes, I was…I don't know exactly if I died or not…I was there at the Hinata Sou at the exact moment the meteor obliterated everything…me and my daughter…the next thing I knew, I was being summoned out of a card by Keitarou." She sighed. "I didn't understand a thing of what was happening. It was all chaos…the entire world was suddenly plunged into darkness…a war broke out between humanity and the darkness that had just descended. Others like me, spirits of pure light, empowered by the final guardians of the light, were summoned into the world to combat the darkness."

"So…after the meteor strike…you died and your soul was sealed away in a card?" Takato asked.

"…I don't know what happened. I only know all my friends who had died in the meteor strike also ended up sealed in cards…we all fought against the darkness alongside our card master." Motoko said, looking out at the open sky. "Then…before the end…he promised me he'd return….as he always did whenever he left. He promised he'd return and he'd bring the light back…he said he'd find Nata-chan after everything's finished… He promised…"

"Oh…so you guys have defeated the darkness…" Takato said, looking out at the frozen city.

"No…apparently not…apparently we left something unfinished…your world…it's still frozen in darkness…" Motoko said, touching the cold glass of the window. "We must go out once again and finish off our task once and for all…that way the souls of the summon cards would be able to finally rest in peace…"

"Ok…good luck…" Takato said, sipping his tea.

"What do you mean, good luck!" Motoko threw her cup at Takato's head which smashed, sending him to the floor. "You're the card master! You have to fight alongside us!"

"I mean…what can I do!" Takato shouted, looking up at Motoko. "I'm just a junior high kid. I have no combat experience whatsoever."

"…I guess I'm wrong…you're not like Keitarou at all…" Motoko sighed. "Listen, our manna power comes from the card master…only the spiritual power of a card master could sustain our presence in this world. Without you, we'd just be a pack of playing cards."

"Great…well I have nothing to do with it. I've got two little sisters to take care of, I can't be going around fighting darkness and whatnot." Takato said, walking to the kitchen.

"Right, so you're just going to leave the world to rot in darkness!" Motoko shouted. "That's your way of going about it!"

"We've survived for a century in this frozen wasteland." Takato said. "And we can survive further."

"Right…you are aware…there is a large dome of spiritual power around this city right now…I've sensed its presence ever since I arrived." Motoko said.

"Yes, the biodome. Why? Want some cake?" Takato offered some cake from the fridge. "As far as I know, it's just a shield to keep out the cold and strange monsters that lurk out in the wasteland. I never heard about it being a dome of spiritual power."

"It's the spiritual element of that dome that's keeping out the monsters spawned of darkness…but the darkness is quickly growing…at some point it will overwhelm this city's spiritual barrier and break in." Motoko said, looking up at the sky. "The darkness will not stop until it has consumed everything."

"Right…right…" Takato said, sitting down on the sofa again. "What do you want me to do? Put on a suit of armour and go fight?"

"No, your only task…well, technically…is to provide us guardians with manna power. We take care of the rest. Off course there are instances where mages fight alongside their partners, though I have no idea what's common with card masters. I've only met three so far…my husband, you, and that friend of yours." Motoko said.

"Can I just give these cards to someone else?" Takato asked. SMASH….

"BAKA!" Motoko stormed out of the apartment and into the street. Meanwhile, Takato lay in a pool of blood with a tanuki statue on his head.

"Why me…?" Takato muttered.

* * *

"It's…so cold…this world you tried to protect…Keitarou…" Motoko looked up at the sky. She was standing by a strange looking building. It looked like the entrance to a subway. "Brrr…." She shivered. She tried to warm her hands. "That idiot…how'd a baka like him get a hold of my card?" 

"Motoko-sempai?" A voice asked. Motoko whirled around, surprised that someone knew her name.

"I'm sorry…" A flurry of ribbons flew out at Motoko. Motoko raised her arm to counter. The ribbon whipped around it and held it fast.

"Sasaki-san…" Motoko said, trying to pull her arm free. Before her, the candy-pink haired girl stood, holding tightly onto the ribbon, her red vest and white long skirt and scarf flying in the wind. Her hair was tied up into her usual twin ponytails under a red barrette. Kaede stood a few metres off, kunais at the ready. "Kaede…" Motoko said, looking at Kaede.

"Well well…where's your card master? Leaving you all alone and weaponless like that…how irresponsible…" Toji appeared, clicking his tongue. "Well now…guess we'll just defeat you first…" He clicked his fingers.

Makie flung Motoko into the subway-station-like building, straight at the opposite wall. Kaede prepared a few ninja seals before charging at Motoko with flaming hands. She delivered a blaze of punches at Motoko, pinning her to the wall to the point of smashing it, before giving her an uppercut which sent her smashing into the ceiling above before falling onto the long flight of steps below. She rolled down a long way into an underground area.

Makie and Kaede descended down the steps, preparing to finish off Motoko, who was lying in a heap on the floor. Kaede picked up Motoko by the collar and raised her over a ditch like opening in the middle of the large tube-like concrete lined room. It did seem like a subway station, only the tracks were far too large for any ordinary subway train of the 21st century.

"I apologize…Aoyama-san…" Kaede said.

"Heh…" Motoko chuckled. "I'm…Urashima…Motoko…"

"Let her go!" A large pipe threatened to bludgeon Kaede from the side. She immediately let go of Motoko and leaped aside out of the way. Motoko fell down onto the tracks below. "Are you ok!" Takato shouted down at Motoko. "Sorry I'm late!" He was standing before Kaede and Makie, a metal pipe in his hands. "STAND BACK!"

"This is a surprise…Takato…" Toji laughed, walking down the steps. "You've saved me the trouble of having to look for you…hahahaha…finish him off."

Both Kaede and Makie advanced. A light was growing brighter at the end of the tunnel. "The train's coming!" Takato shouted down at Motoko.

"Ughh…" Motoko tried to get up, but in vain. The train drew closer.

"NO!" Takato shouted, leaping down to Motoko.

"You…baka…" Motoko muttered.

* * *

To be continued… 

Note: Urashima Hinata AKA Nata-chan is a character I took out of Love Hina Children of the Exodus. In that particular story, she was an adopted child. I re-adapted her to be Motoko and Keitarou's daughter in this story. Just so that you know.


	4. Chapter 3ShinxKei version

Chapter 3: Close Encounter ShinxKei version

Finally, here's the ShinobuxKeitaro version of the story. This is yet another test chapter. Please note that I still haven't decided on which version I'll continue, so please help me decide by telling me your opinion.

For this chapter, I decided to alter the story a bit. Cut back to that part in chapter 2 when Takato reaches the inn and encounters the little girl in violet.

By the way, I finally decided, I guess I'm going to need proof-readers. If anyone's interested, please tell. I'm offering positions for two proof-readers. Preferably, proof-readers who are willing to proof-read Soul Requiem, Love Hina Alternative, and New Mobile Suit: Project Gundam Hina Eternity (if you don't want to do all three, just one or two, no problem, just apply). Please tell me if you're interested, as well as the stories you're interested in proof-reading. Also, as an added offer, anyone who agrees to proof-read will get the chance to guest-star in Omakes, 'Behind the scene' episodes, intermissions, and perhaps even in the stories themselves from time to time.

Thank you.

Disclaimer: I don't own Love Hina or anything else here that might belong to someone else.

* * *

"I've been waiting for you…" The girl said, standing up.

"Who…are you?" Takato asked, venturing forwards. The little girl was still dressed in her violet dress. It was certainly not suited for the weather.

"You…don't remember…do you? But promises never die…you finally came." The little girl turned around and looked up at the pile of debris behind her.

"I…don't know why I came…can…you please…explain?" Takato ventured, sensing that this girl would probably leave out any other details, such as her identity. "And you might want to wear my jacket…it's rather cold."

"The dead don't feel cold…" The girl smiled. "All will be made clear…in time. You shall discover everything for yourself." The girl ran away into the gathering mist.

"H…hey!" Takato shouted after her as he started running after her. The chilly winds suddenly whipped around him as he trudged through the snow in the direction the girl had disappeared. "Come back!"

He trudged through more ruins, stumbling and tripping over random debris. "Hello! Little girl! We've got to get out of here before the storm sets in!"

He suddenly slipped on a rock and fell down onto a pile of debris which suddenly gave away under his weight. "EEEEYAAAAAGHHH!" He shouted as the sky spun beyond the rising smoke of dust and plaster before him…before something covered the sky and plunged everything into darkness.

"Ok...stuck down some hole…below the ruins of some God-forsaken inn…in the middle of a snowstorm…" He flipped out his handphone, "with no signal either…oh well, at least the light's bright." He said optimistically as he lifted his handphone to light up the surrounding darkness. The pale greenish blue glow lit up a few walls and a rough wooden floor. It was dark and musty down there. The exit seemed to have been sealed off by the cave in when he fell in.

"Well, I guess the only way now is forwards." He said to himself as he picked himself up and started to cautiously traverse the thick darkness. As he progressed, the more he thought…labyrinth. He came across many doors, junctions, intersections, and even a few stairs leading downwards into eventhicker darkness…there was an eerie sound blowing through the corridors. He tried to dismiss is as the sound of the storm, but it freaked him out all the same. He was taking every opportunity to move upwards, though such opportunities were rare. There were far more staircases downwards than upwards. He tried to move as straight as possible, avoiding the doors and junctions whenever he can. He had enough experience with horror movies to know that opening random doors in places like these just wasn't wise…or at least…within the bounds of horror imperative.

As he walked, he heard a rush of air behind him. The hair on his back stood up as he slowly turned back…and saw nothing but darkness, slowly creeping in the wake of the handphone's glow. He shook himself mentally and tried to move forwards. As he walked, he suddenly felt another rush of air accompanied by a sudden crescendo in the eerie moan-like sound, this time to his right, from an adjoining corridor. He looked around and continued walking, though at a faster pace.

He made his way down the corridor until he reached a junction. He looked down the adjoining corridor and lifted his handphone to shed more light into the gloaming darkness…

And to his sheer shock and fright something flashed across another corridor joined to the corridor he was looking down.

He looked about, quickly chose the route that would take him farthest away from there, and ran. He was gasping for breath, not because of exhaustion, but mostly because of the shock he just experienced. The eerie sound grew distant behind him as he shot down yet another corridor and descended a number of random staircases…until he was in a corridor deeper down.

"Gasp…gasp…hah…great…now I'm even deeper down…." He supported himself on his knees and looked down at the dust laden floor. "Perhaps…perhaps that was just my imagination…"

_"…Keitaro…"_ a whisper barely above a breath swept through the corridors.

* * *

In an alternate dimension…

The author, Beyond the Bounds, leaps in his seat and upturns his keyboard as the clock downstairs strikes 12.00…midnight. He feels a tingle run down his spine as the hairs on the back of his head stand up. He looks down and finds his pencil had moved by 2 cm…THE HORROR! He looks around and stairs into a pale white face…AAAAAAAAGGGHHHH…

"Bro…it's 12.00…get to sleep will you?" His little sister says, before climbing into the futon cabinet. "And stop reading horror stories, you know how creaky that chair is when you shudder."

Beyond the Bounds decides perhaps this scene is far too horror-oriented and decides to apologize to the readers, as he did categorize this as an action/adventure romance. He knows the MotxKei version was a lot more light hearted compared to this, and he would like to sincerely apologize. Sorry.

* * *

"Then again…" Takato looked up, looked around, and started running down yet another random corridor as the eerie moan-like sound crept closer.

_"…Keitaro…"_ The whisper swept through the darkness yet again. _"…Keitaro…I've been waiting…Keitaro…"_ the whispers echoed around, bouncing back and forth, combining into a sigh of whispers.

Shadows crept all around him. Flashes of white dart across every single corridor he passes now. The whispers were growing intense. _"…Keitaro…Keitaro…you promised…Keitaro…"_

_"…Keitaro…you don't hate me…do you…?_" Takato stopped at an intersection as he tried to decide which way to run. He looked around, trying to judge which way the whispers were coming from. A flash of white swept by the corridor in front of him, making him dash down a side corridor out of pure instinct. _"…Keitaro…Keitaro…giggle…remember your promise? You'll come back to me…right? To…Shinobu-chan…"_

He ran to the end of a corridor...there was no other way out. There was only one door, at the very end of the corridor. He looked behind him. The whispers, giggles, and eerie moans were drawing closer. He looked before him. The door was a strong wooden door with a single handle. As reluctant as he was to open doors in such a place, he was even more reluctant to come face to face with whatever it was that was after him. He took a deep breath and grasped the handle. He forced it down as it creaked painfully under his push. The door opened slowly with an ominous creak as he forced it open. He slipped inside and slammed the door back shut. Thankfully, there was a large bolt on the other side. He slid it home and slumped against the door.

"Phew…now where am I?" He looked about and raised his handphone. It was… a room…of all things. There was a bed on one side. A small desk and book case stood on another side, right beside the bed. Dolls lined every available surface, the top of the book case, the table, and especially the bed. "Wh…who would have a room down here? Any ways out?" He got up and raised the handphone further up. "There's…a window?" He asked, incredulously. There was only darkness beyond the windows, but there were windows nonetheless…why windows down here? The idea itself perplexed Takato beyond anything. There didn't seem to be any other openings down there.

He walked over to the desk and looked around. He decided he would just have to wait until the snowstorm was over. He'd be able to get a signal then, or at least, he thought so. He found a few odds and ends on the desk. From the looks of it, it was definitely a girl's room. There was diary on one side of the desk. A few drawings littered the table. He tried to get a closer look…and recoiled as soon as the drawings became clear. He then noticed something wrong with all the dolls…they were…slightly deformed…

He came up close to dolls…

…before recoiling with shock at the mutilation each doll has suffered. Some had been ripped to shreds, some had had been slashed into pieces. Pieces of cotton stuffing were strewn around all over the place.

"What…the…?"

He slowly reached out for the diary and cautiously opened it, wary for any other surprises….it was a large, heavy diary, with many inserted pages. There were entries all the way from 1995 to 2013. He flipped through the diary and found the entries were normal enough.

November 1997- "dear diary, today was sunny…"

January 2000 – "Dear diary, Today we went to a local temple where Motoko-sempai was…"

September 2003 – "Dear Diary, today me and Keitaro-kun made a promise…"

March 2006 – "Dear Diary…today…is the happiest day of my life…I'm getting married…"

May 2007 – "Dear Diary…today's yet another happiest day of my life…She's the most beautiful little angel…me and Kei-kun…"

December 2012 – "Dear Diary, Kei-kun returned for Christmas. Hinata-chan's really glad to see him again…"

February 2013 – "…everything's dark…so dark…"

He immediately shut the diary after this last entry as more…drawings…assaulted his eyes. The handphone suddenly beeped, telling him the batteries were already running low…now of all times. "Oh darn…not yet…" Takato moaned.

"_It isn't nice to look at other people's stuff…Keitaro…_" Takato whirled around as he heard the voice from behind him, dropping the diary onto the dust laden desk, raising a large cloud of dust. He slowly turned before coming face to face with…it…

'It' was a young girl in white…probably 13 or 14 years of age, with short dark hair.. She was sitting on the bed, looking down at the ground, the top of her head towards Takato. Takato could already guess what was coming next, but it was too late to turn back.

_"…Keitaro…I've been waiting…" _the figure giggled, echoing, before slowly raising her head up. Takato's heart leapt into his throat as he saw the girl's eyes…they were dark…empty…a window into an eternal abyss that was threatening to suck him in. The handphone's glow dimmed.

_"Kei…ta…ro…"_ The girl moaned, as she stood up and took a step towards Takato. _"…you…promised…we'll…play…"_ She whispered maliciously, as she took another step. _"You…promised…me…"_ she giggled again. The giggles drove rods of ice through Takato's spine as he tried to back away…and due to certain horror imperatives, he found himself frozen to the ground in pure fright.

_"Keitaro…"_ She whispered playfully. _"Come play with Shinobu-chan…"_ she giggled again as she took another slow step forwards. Takato fell onto his backside as he tried to move his entire body away without the consensus of his legs. He tried to push away backwards but almost his entire body was paralyzed by the cold dark stare. _"…Keitaro…"_ the girl laughed happily, her laughter echoing eerily around the darkness, as she reached out for Takato. _"…Shinobu-chan's been waiting…"_ The handphone's glow diminished completely, leaving Takato in the dark.

Takato managed to bring up a trembling hand to shield his face as the little girl reached out for him, groping for him. As her pale dead-looking fingers crept closer he closed his eyes. The touch was cold…colder than the frozen earth outside…colder than death itself. It plunged Takato into a sea of frozen darkness. The giggles followed him down as he sank deeper into the thick velvety darkness.

Until he finally saw something…something far down…deep inside the oblivion he was delving into. It was a small circle of light, besieged from all sides by darkness. He tried to move towards it, semi-consciously attracted to the dim radiance, the only thing that broke the gloom of the oblivion. As he got closer, he finally made out what it was…

It was a girl…the same young girl, in fact, that had haunted him in the corridors…she was also looking down, sitting, hugging her knees, dressed in the exact same white dress as her spectre counter-part. "Keitaro…" she whispered, before noticing Takato's presence. She looked up…but this time Takato didn't see darkness…he saw a deep sorrow, anguish, and pain in her eyes.

"…Keitaro…?" She asked, reaching out a hand. "…L…LEAVE! Don't come here! Leave now!" She shouted, as she tried to stand up. The darkness bound her and started to envelope her in whisps of pure obscurity.

"…h….huh?" Takato watched as the darkness started to consume the girl.

Tears started to run down her cheeks as she again shouted, "Go! Go now!"

Takato gritted his teeth and started to again move towards the girl, reaching out a hand, as the darkness almost completely consumed the girl. He knew he had to save her, he knew he had to. Somehow, it was the only sensible coherent thing going through his mind. He stretched out his hand as far as it would go…before the darkness suddenly bound around him as well from behind. He looked back, "Gah…let go!" He shouted, as he reached out his hand for her. "Take…my…hand!" He shouted. He stretched his hand as far as it would go…towards her outstretched hand…that was now almost completely enveloped in darkness.

"…please…" The girl whispered, as the darkness came up to her face.

"EEEEEEYAAAAAAAGHH!" Takato cried out as he made one final lunge forwards and reached out for her hand…

…he grasped it…

Something flashed in his mind…

"…Kei-kun…" a sweet voice called out to him as everything flashed bright.

FLASH…

The walls of the room shone bright as something within Takato flashed a radiant white. The young girl recoiled as she tried to shield her eyes from the blinding glare. The darkness suddenly dissolved around him. Flakes of snow came down. The rough wooden floorboards dissolved, leaving behind a white frozen earth. A soft breeze blew around them, carrying sakura petals into a slow, circular dance around them. The darkness above opened up to reveal the pale grey skies, dotted with flakes of swirling snow.

The bright flash of light subsided. A few sakura petals swirled around Takato as he opened his eyes. A card was spinning before him, shining bright. Beyond the blinding glare, in the middle of the swirling sakura petals, stood a girl, her back towards him, looking straight up, both arms extended sideways, as if taking in a deep, refreshing breath. Her hair shone in the pale light, flying with the gentle yet sharp gust of wind. The other spectre girl was standing opposite this new apparition, watching it with eyes of pure hatred.

Her white junior high sailor uniform flashed bright under the blinding light. Her dark blue skirt flowed with swirling breeze, in a slow dance together with the sakura petals. Her dark sapphire hair rippled and shone under the bright glow. The card before Takato slowed down into a sedate spin, revealing the light green words on the dark green back, which said, "Magister Carta Magi Ultima" The card then slowly rotated to reveal the front. There was a picture of a lone girl in a sailor school uniform, holding both arms together in a prayer, with her eyes closed.

The girl stood still under the spiraling sakura petals, head upwards, hands spread outwards. Takato shielded his eyes as another flash consumed her. Something started materializing from the top downwards. It was a brilliant, flowing light blue Japanese Goddess' robe that slowly materialized over the uniform. The sleeves extended until they completely hung over her arms while the robe itself extended down to her skirt where the front stopped extending while the back continued to extend until it reached ankle length. A large ribbon looped around her waist and tied into a knot behind her as two separate pieces of cloth extended down the two sides of her skirt, forming a three part long skirt. Symbols burned in the air around her hands, forming the tip of a staff. The symbols extended downwards, forming the rest of the staff as it traveled farther downwards. As the transfiguration was completed, an explosion of light engulfed the girl once again.

The flash subsided as the sakura petals blew away with a sudden gust of wind that picked up her long flowing Japanese goddess' robe and long skirt. The card flashed and shook as a similar transfiguration took place across the card form down upwards, extending in a blinding flash across the surface of the card. It slowly rotated as it transfigured, revealing a change occurring across the back as well. The dark green back was turning silver, with the lighter silver words "Magister Carta Magi Takato Hayamura" slowly replacing the old light green words.

The card dropped into Takato's hands as the girl lowered her arms and face. "I have returned…" She sighed "…it has been a long time…Kei-kun…". She looked up at the other girl standing before her.

_"You…"_ The spectre girl in white said.

"Yes…me…" The new apparition said.

"_Shinobu Maehara…or should I say…the fake one…" _The spectre smirked._ "I am the real Shinobu Maehara…the one and only…the real soul, trapped under the layers of lies and denials you've slowly cocooned yourself with…Shinobu Maehara…"_ The girl in white said, raising an arm.

"I am who I am…" The other girl said, raising her staff. "I am Shinobu Maehara…please stand back, Kei-kun…"

"_You've never been honest to yourself, Shinobu-chan…"_ The spectre Shinobu laughed a chilly laugh as she started to pace around the other Shinobu. _"Even when you loved that boy, Keitaro…if I never stepped in…you'd never have gotten him all for yourself…"_

"No…" Light Shinobu, as Takato decided to label her, said. "It was thanks to me and Kei-kun's hardwork together…and everyone else's support. You had no part in it…all you did was seethe in the dark…"

_"Deny it all you want, girl, that's what you've always done, isn't it? Deny everything around you, deny your very soul…sugar-coat yourself in lies and deception…that's what you've always been doing…but now…"_ Spectre Shinobu laughed. _"The circle is complete….I have returned, and I shall save us both…"_

"I've never lied to myself, nor to anyone else…" Light Shinobu said, following Spectre Shinobu's movements with her eyes. "And I shall defeat you, no matter what the cost…"

"_Well, here we are, two sisters, the sister of light, and the sister of dark…" _Spectre Shinobu said. _"I've defeated you many times before…now I shall defeat you once again…"_ Darkness shrouded her hands.

"Mea Virga lucis… Spheras Magius, aerista Luciae, wesma an miyas questis, foros series lucis rubiconeia..." Light Shinobu whispered under her breath as the light on the tip of her staff grew brighter. A circle of light flashed on the ground around her as she raised her staff.

"_Aerista Obscurii, wesma an miyas questis, tempestus pandemas obscurii!"_ Spectre Shinobu shouted, raising her hand.

* * *

To be continued…

So, what do you think? I still don't know which version I'll be continuing, so you readers can help me make up my mind. Please review and tell me which version you prefer. Arrigato! By the way, don't forget to tell me if you're interested in proof-reading!


	5. Chapter 4MotxKei version

Hey, this MotxKei version is starting to become lots of fun. And so far people have been urging me to continue it so I think I'll try and write this chapter. Remember, if anyone else comes to me with a pairing idea, I'll consider making another version. Submit your pairing idea (along with possible plot plans, if you have any) ASAP before I decide to continue a particular version. Which version I'm going to decide to continue will also depend on readers' opinion, so please help by telling me which version you prefer.

By the way, I finally decided, I guess I'm going to need proof-readers. If anyone's interested, please tell. I'm offering positions for two proof-readers. If possible, proof-readers who are willing to proof-read Soul Requiem, Love Hina Alternative, and Project Gundam Hina Eternity (if you don't want to do all three, just one or two, no problem, just apply). Please tell me if you're interested, as well as the stories you're interested in proof-reading. Also, as an added offer, anyone who agrees to proof-read will get the chance to guest-star in Omakes, 'Behind the scene' episodes, intermissions, and perhaps even in the stories themselves from time to time. Thank you.

Now, to reply to reviews!

Ransumi: Thanks for the review. It's good to know that some people actually like MotokoxKeitaro fics. Thanks again!

Annoying Assassin: Thanks for the review: Fate/Stay Night? Well now that you mention it, it does seem similar. I didn't realize it before. Thanks again.

Meirus: Thanks for the review. It's good to know someone likes it. I wasn't too sure about the whole idea myself. Thanks again!

Berreta Pakin Mailman: Thanks for the review. It's good to know someone likes the pairing. I'm still not too sure about continuing thisversion yet, but so far, the reviews have been in favor of the MotxKei version, so we'll see. Thanks again!

Disclaimer: I don't own Love Hina, Mahou Sensei Negima, or anything else here that might belong to someone else.

Chapter 4: Darkness Within (MotxKei Version)

* * *

Soul Requiem Opening Theme (MotokoxKeitarou version) 

Hishoku No Sora (Shakugan No Shana OST)

Intro

(A large clock twirls rapidly around as cards zoom across it and fall into an orbit around it.)

Soshite kono sora akaku somete (and stain this sky red)

Takato looks up at the sunset staining the pale grey skies blood red. He looks back to see Motoko standing behind him.

Mata kuru toki kono mi de susumu dake (just rely on yourself to walk through the approaching times)

(Takato and Keitarou lean one another's backs as the background shows their faces looking upwards in opposite directions. Motoko appears out of the shadows between them and walks towards the screen)

Interlude 1

(Scene shows Hinata Sou with everyone playing and laughing in front of it. Keitarou had a little girl in a hakama and gi on his shoulders as he ran about, Motoko beside him. Everyone was laughing and smiling. The sakura trees were in bloom around them. Everything was green and colourful. Scene cuts by flying up to the blue sky and fading out to white)

Interlude 2

(scene fades in from white and descends to a desolate, ruined Hinata Sou amidst gently falling snow. A lone boy, Takato, stood in front of the inn, a few cards in his hands. A sharp wind blew the cards out his hands as the scene fades out into the title screen: Soul Requiem: Return to Hinata Sou)

Sure chigatte yuku hito mo magire nakushita mono mo itsuka ha kie yuku toki (people that walk by you and everything that was lost in the chaos will someday disappear)

(One by one, the story's characters appear moving across the screen)

Atsuku yuruganu tsuyosa (passionate unwavering strength)

(Keitarou looks behind him)

Hakanaku yureru yowasa (transient and wavering weakness)

(Motoko looks behind her)

Shosen onaji mirai (in the end, it's the same future)

They join hands as an orbit of cards fly around them.

Sonna ni chijyou kouka wo tokashi (melting down the rock hard earth)

Takato slams his fist into the frozen earth. Hikari and Himari's faces loom up in the background.

Arawareru hi kureru sekai (as days start and the world ends)

(all the other card masters in the story stand facing away from the screen, looking back at the screen as darkness falls upon the world. A violent wind blows from behind them.)

Kaze ni nabikase sen wo hiite (draw a line as the wind blows spurs you on)

(All the characters run across the screen, executing their signature attacks)

Nagareru yon a kamisaki teki wo sasu (flips of paper, gently flowing like water, strike down the enemy)

(a small obscure figure in flowing clothes rise up from a flash of light. Magical streaks of manna fly around her as she smiles up at the screen as Motoko's transparent figure comes and embraces her from behind)

Fumi ikitta omoi minagiru yone (the determination wells up within me)

(Takato and Keitarou stand back to back, cards in their hands. They both start running in opposite directions as all the other characters join them in the background)

Subete ha ima kono te di shimei hatashite yuku dake (all I have to do at this moment is to complete the mission with these hands of mine)

(Motoko and the other characters look up as the darkness looms up in the horizon. They look behind them, their gaze following Takato as he walks up towards them and takes his place in front of them. They all leap into a charge)

FLASH…

"Hold on…Motoko!" The sun was setting in the distance. A sharp gust of wind blew by. "No matter what, don't let go!"

"You baka! Let go! Let go!" The raven haired swordswoman screamed. "I won't accept it! I won't!"

"No matter what…I'm not letting go…" The hand slipped slightly. "Crap…"

FLASH…

A bright light was drawing near….

"You baka…" Motoko muttered.

"I guess…I am a baka…" Takato said, taking hold of Motoko and shielding her from the train. He knew it was useless, but that was just as much as he could do.

Something flashed bright…accompanied with an explosion and the sound of metal painfully twisting.

"H…Holy…" Toji was at a loss for words as he sat sprawled against a wall, regarding the carnage before him.

"Oh dear…I hope no one got hurt…" Makie said as she tried to stand up.

"De gozaru?" Kaede asked in wonder. Before them, the train lay derailed, all its coaches thrown far and wide across the huge underground station. Apparently they were empty.

Takato slowly lowered his hands from his face.

Black Sakura blossoms were floating across the station, carried forth in a sharp breeze. Motoko stood in front of Takato, a jet black katana held in an outstretched hand.

"That's….that's the…" Toji whispered.

"The legendary blade, Hinata…de gozaru" Kaede said, standing up.

"I…I really did it…this time…" Motoko chuckled. "I…I don't…I don't have enough…power…to hold it in…" She winced as she fell to her knees. "I'm…sorry…"

"Kaede! Makie! She's down! Get her!" Toji shouted.

"I'm sorry, master, but our first priority is to get out of here, alive, de gozaru…" Kaede said, retreating towards Toji. "Makie! We're retreating, de gozaru!"

"What…what's happening!" Takato shouted. "Hey, are you all right!" He grasped Motoko by the shoulders.

"Get…away…from…me…" Motoko gritted her teeth. "GET AWAY FROM ME!" She tried to push Takato away. Takato held onto her tight. Whisps of darkness were gathering around, swirling around Motoko. The entire station was shaking dangerously, threatening to crumble at any time. As the whisps of darkness came closer, a wave of darkness blew outwards from Motoko.

"Stay away from her!" Takato shouted at the darkness while holding tightly onto Motoko. "I said, get away from her!" The whisps of darkness gathered around and went straight for Takato.

"I'm…sorry…" Motoko whispered.

FLASH…

"No matter what…if you put your mind to it…you'll be able to achieve it."

"Baka…you always say that…." Motoko frowned at him. "But I guess that's why you're Keitarou…"

FLASH…

"Takato!" Motoko screamed, raising a hand and flipping aside his coat, reaching for his pocket. She grabbed one of the blank cards. "You're a card master!" Everything flashed bright as she slammed the card into Takato's hands.

Suddenly, a wave of light blew outwards from the flash of bright light. There, amidst swirling smoke, right in between Takato and the whisps of darkness, stood a figure in a pair of black casual jeans and a shirt. It turned around as time slowed down and looked at Takato.

"Holy crap…who was the bastard who summoned me here…!" The figure shouted as it extended a hand outwards. Again something flashed.

"What…happened…?" Takato lowered his hands from his face and looked around him. He gasped. "What the…"

"Yes…that's what I want to ask…" The figure before him said, its back towards him. It was clothed in a long black leather coat, a scythe in one hand. "Were you trying to kill me! Summoning me into a place like that!" The figure looked around at Takato. The first word that came to Takato was 'wanna-be cool'. A cold wind blew by, raising his coat.

"Who're…you…?" Takato asked, as he noticed they were out in the pale sunlight again.

"That's not important right now…the important thing is, you're a card master, and one of your cards have gone out of control." The boy said, looking down.

"Huh?" Takato looked down and noticed they were standing on a tall building overlooking the crumbling subway station. "Hey…what about that girl! Motoko!" He shouted, suddenly panicked.

"Well…she should be fine…physically. Though summoning the Hinata blade without an ample supply of manna energy is the worst idea imaginable…" The boy said, spinning his scythe and admiring the effect of the sunlight on the blade.

"But…why…why would she do that?" Takato asked. The subway station below was crumbling down, sending smoke and dust into the sky.

"She…I guess she was out of manna energy or the manna energy you were supplying her was so teeny there was no other way to save your scrawny ass. To wield the Hinata, one must have a strong resolution and a Godly amount of power to handle the seal, otherwise the darkness within would consume the wielder." The boy explained, throwing his scythe over to Takato.

"H….hey?" Takato cried out as he caught the heavy blade. "Wh…what am I supposed to do with this!" He sagged under the weight. "Ughh…and how on earth were you…ugh…twirling it around like…aghh…that?"

"It's between the card master and his card. I have nothing to do with this." The boy said, turning around. Suddenly, something below exploded. Takato looked over the parapet and saw that darkness had engulfed the remains of the subway station.

"Wh…what am I supposed to do by myself!" Takato shouted trying to heave up the scythe.

"Your problem…" The boy said as his black coat disappeared, leaving him in his black jeans and shirt.

Suddenly, the building Takato was on crumbled. "WHOAAAH!" He screamed, as gravity took its toll on him.

"Good luck!" The boy shouted at him as he leaped up into the sky, off the crumbling building.

Takato looked before him as he fell. Something was leaping up from debris to debris towards him. Then it appeared, its blood red eyes flashing menacingly.

"Motoko!" Takato shouted. The raven haired swordswoman screamed and slashed down with the jet black blade.

"Aaghh…" Takato raised the scythe and countered the slash, though the shock from the sword impact threatened to break his shoulders apart as the sword and scythe made contact. "Motoko! Please! Snap out of it!" Darkness was swirling around Motoko. There was pure darkness behind her blazing eyes. She smirked as she raised her blade again as they both fell towards the earth amidst the crumbling pieces of concrete.

Takato raised his scythe to counter the slash again and winced as the blades made contact. He grunted as he tried to push away Motoko's blade. Motoko leaped backwards onto another falling piece of rubble and shouted, "Zan Gan Ken!" as she slashed the katana downwards, sending out a wave of ki at Takato. Something flickered in his mind as he saw the ki wave. He knew it…he knew this attack…and he knew exactly how to counter it. He raised his scythe and slammed it into the piece of rubble he was standing on and slashed upwards at the ki wave, effectively neutralizing it, before leaping forwards towards Motoko.

"Give it up…weakling…" Motoko said in a harsh, sharp tone. Her voice echoed and reverberated menacingly. She slashed out a wave of ki at Takato which blasted him into another large chunk of concrete.

"Never! If I put my mind to it, I can accomplish anything! I'll save Motoko!" Takato shouted, as he struggled to regain a footing. Motoko's eyes flickered at that exact moment.

He knew he had to do something…but what! Then everything before him flashed bright once again before lapsing into complete darkness for a brief moment.

FLASH….

"Motoko! Help! I'm being chased by a zombie!" There was the sound of rapid footfalls, erratic breaths, and occasional screams. A light brown haired girl was running madly, heavy footsteps following in her wake. There was the sound of a blade madly swishing around in random slashes.

"Then…I'll just have to distract it for a bit…" A raven haired girl in a senior high sailor uniform murmured, grasping the hilt of a pure white katana. A light breeze blew through her hair. "SORRY!" She shouted as she leaped up into the air in a flip. Time froze, everything went silent, as their lips met. The darkness subsided slightly.

"Nani?" the bells on the blade rang clear. The blue sky above flashed bright.

"Now! Shinmei-ryu! Ougi! Zan Ma Ken Nino Tachi!" With one slash of her blazing blade she severed the darkness within him and returned it to whence it came.

"I've…I've done it…I've sealed it…" The girl murmured as she regarded the jet black blade as it fell with a clatter onto the earth.

FLASH…

"Huh!" Takato looked into the fiery bright red eyes and saw…sorrow…anguish… but …no hatred… "Motoko…" He closed his eyes and murmured. "Sorry…" He leaped forwards

As they made contact…Takato looked deep into Motoko's eyes and saw everything…all the pain and sorrow pent up within…everything flashed bright before fading into darkness.

Takato found himself floating in darkness, sinking in an abyss deeper than oblivion. He continued to sink through the darkness…until he finally saw something…something far down…deep inside the oblivion he was delving into. It was a small circle of light, besieged from all sides by darkness. He tried to move towards it, semi-consciously attracted to the dim radiance, the only thing that broke the gloom of the oblivion. As he got closer, he finally made out what it was…

It was Motoko…shivering as she hugged her knees, all alone, surrounded by pure darkness. She suddenly looked up as she noticed Takato's presence and gasped. "Kei…Kei-kun…Get out of here! Get out of here, baka!" She shouted, while holding out one arm to tell him to halt. "Leave! Now!"

"Motoko!" Takato shouted. "And for the last time, my name's Takato!" Takato shouted, as he tried to move forwards towards Motoko, reaching out his hands.

The darkness suddenly started to sweep over Motoko and consume her slowly.

"Motoko!" Takato shouted.

_"It's futile…"_ Two dark eyes flashed in the darkness behind Motoko's shoulders. The whisps of darkness gathered together to form a face…reminiscent of Motoko, but with eyes blazing with darkness. _"…I…shall consume her soul…and yours as well…"_

"You can go ahead and be as cryptic as you want, but stay away from her!" Takato shouted, stretching his hand out for Motoko. "Motoko! I'm not leaving without you!" A tear ran down Motoko's cheek.

"Then…you shall drown in oblivion…" The darkness behind Motoko said, as a jet black blade slashed out at Takato from the darkness. In one last minute maneuver Takato managed to prevent himself getting fricasseed, but the sword managed to graze him. A chaotic swarm of slashes ensued, grazing him and cutting him all over the place, and yet he persevered.

"Motoko!" Takato shouted, as the darkness started to consume him from behind. "Ughhh…" He gritted his teeth and reached out his hand in one last desperate lunge. "Motoko!" He grasped Motoko's hand…at that very moment, everything flashed bright.

The black blade fell with a clatter onto the frozen earth before it started to dematerialize into whisps of darkness. The scythe blazed a bright white as the pale sunlight filtered through the gently falling dust and smoke.

"Gasp...sigh…" Takato blew a sigh of relief as he dug his way out of a pile of plaster and debris. "Th…That's…over…"

"I…what happened…?" Motoko sat up and pushed aside a few pieces of wood that was covering her. She found that there were tears running down her cheeks. "Wh…why?"

"Hey, are you all right?" Takato asked.

"I…" Motoko looked around, wiping her eyes. "H…hey? Where's the Hinata blade?"

"It's gone…" Takato smiled.

"You defeated it!" Motoko gasped. "And…did you just…" She touched her lips. "You…didn't…you…baka…"

"Ehehehe…off course I didn't…" Takato laughed uneasily, scrambling up. "Uhh…I've got to return this now…" Takato looked down at the scythe. "Huh?" The scythe started to dematerialize into whisps of light. "What?"

"D…don't tell me…" Motoko muttered, shuddering. "Of all the cards I could've pulled out…I pulled out his…" Motoko looked around.

"Hiya, Hime-chi…" Rayce laughed, walking up behind them.

"Y…you…" Motoko pointed a shuddering finger in his direction. "N…no…"

"hey, it's been a long time since I've been out. What good food have they got to offer here?" Rayce asked, shielding his eyes as he looked around.

"Takato…quick…de-summon this idiot before he destroys us all…" Motoko looked around at Takato. "Wait…you didn't just tell him to fight me all by himself, did you?" Motoko stood up and looked at Rayce. "There was a reason why I pulled out your card…"

"Why? It was card master 'business'…the last thing I'd want to do is to interfere…" Rayce smirked, emphasizing the word 'business'. "You wouldn't want me to do the deed, would you?"

"Ummm…Motoko-san…who is this?" Takato asked.

"You don't want to know. Now, I need a weapon! Quickly! To strike down this bozo!" She extended a hand in Takato's direction. She was hit in the head by a flying metal pipe.

The boy in black just stared.

"What was that for, you baka!" Motoko shouted, holding Takato up by the collar.

"B…but…you said you wanted a weapon…" Takato stammered. "Anyway…you should rest…you don't look too good…"

"Are you implying I'm ugly now, you baka! I meant my katana, you retard! Why'd I fight with a metal pipe! Summon my katana, you dolt!" Motoko shouted. "And I'm going to seriously pound you for kissing me!"

"It's not my fault!" Takato shouted. "I'm new to this whole card dealer thing!"

"Card master!" Rayce and Motoko corrected him.

* * *

"You serious! Is this all the cake that's left!" Rayce shouted, looking in the refrigerator. 

"I do live here with two little girls…" Takato said. "Any sweets would vanish instantly." They were back in the apartment. The fog outside was thickening, obscuring the city underneath a blanket of rolling white.

"Does it ever stop snowing here?" Motoko looked out the window. "ah…can you just let me do that by myself?"

"Sorry, I know it stings a little, but I think I should do it. Some of this first aid equipment might not have existed in your age." Takato said, applying some disinfectant on the cuts and bruises on Motoko's arm. They were sitting at a kotatsu by the windows that were now a solid pale white.

"Why don't you just use a manna charge to heal her? You are a card master, after all." Rayce suggested from behind the refrigerator door.

"He can't. He doesn't know how to regulate his manna properly yet. The manna he's supplying us with is barely enough to keep us existing." Motoko said, her eyes closed. "H…hey! That's my eye, you dolt!"

"You suck…Hey, I remember back when they were advertising these as new products….hmmm…since 2013, Aesop bubblegum…cool. Hey! What year is this?"

"2113…" Motoko and Takato said in unison. There was the sound of a spurt from behind the refrigerator followed by a dull clonk as something hit a refrigerator shelf.

"2113!" Rayce emerged from behind the refrigerator door, a bump on his head, soda all down his front. "You mean…you mean…"

Takato and Motoko looked at his anguished face.

"I missed the entire season of 'Next Door'!" He shouted.

"What's that?" Takato asked, picking up a bandage. Motoko sighed with exasperation.

"A corny daytime soap opera series featuring a star he had a huge crush on." Motoko said. "Typical…he finds himself thrown a century into the future and that's all he cares about…"

"Oh…must be tough for you guys…finding yourselves in a completely foreign world." Takato said. "Anyway, I was wondering, were those two other girls in the subway station guardian souls as well?"

"Who?" Rayce asked, rummaging through a few cupboards. "Hey, have you got any real food here? Like crisps?"

"Sasaki Makie and Nagase Kaede…yes, they were our close friends. They were there alongside us during what was called the 'Black Wars'." Motoko said, ignoring Rayce's retarded questions.

"But…if they were your allies…why were they…?" Takato wondered out loud.

"Oh, simple. It depends on the card master." Rayce said, coming into the room with a ton of snacks in his hands. "Every card must follow the orders of their card masters. For example, if you had commanded me to pick up the scythe and fight Motoko, I would have…but it never occurred to you, did it?" Rayce asked, sitting down at the kotatsu and opening a can of crisps.

"You idiot!" Motoko was about to leap over the kotatsu and attack Rayce. She already had one foot on the table.

"So…Toji really wants me dead…?" Takato asked, holding onto Motoko's gi. "Anywhere but my house, please."

"Fine…" She sighed. "Seemed that way…I guess he really did want you killed." Motoko said, sitting back down. "Remind me to kill you later when we're outside, Rayce."

"But…he's my own classmate…how could he?" Takato looked down at his hands.

"These cards…they hold an amazingly great amount of power…." Rayce said, picking up his own card, which had a picture of him carrying a scythe. "In the hands of one with dark ambitions, it could turn into a source of evil. People with hidden dark ambitions and a weak resolution would find themselves turned to the dark side immediately…such was the curse the darkness placed upon these cards of light."

"Which was why the cards were entrusted to one card master and one card master only, a man of strong will and heart who is capable of vanquishing the darkness." Motoko said.

"Where is Keitarou, anyway?" Rayce asked, biting through a ton of candy. Motoko picked up a can of soda and flung it at Rayce's head. Bullseye.

"You idiot…you know what year it is. If the war didn't end back then, that means something happened…and whatever happened, he can't be alive now…not after a whole century." Motoko said, looking down.

"So I guess there IS a limit to Keitarou's immortality." Rayce said, nodding sagely, before another soda can made contact with his skull.

* * *

"So this is…the ancient land of Japan…" A brown haired girl in a long purple overcoat smiled as she looked up at the grey sky and took in a deep breath. Behind her were two other girls. A pair of bell-shaped hair ornaments jingled in one of the girls' hair as a breeze blew past them. The breeze picked up the long blonde hair of the other girl who had the figure of a 10 year old but the eyes of one who had lived far longer. 

"Come, Asuna-chan, Eva-chan, we have a mission to complete." The girl in purple said, looking at the two girls behind her. A plane roared over them as it prepared to land.

"Hai." The girl with the bell shaped hair ornaments said, nodding. The other girl, who was dressed in a pure black coat and barrette, just nodded.

A black limousine pulled up in front of the airport. The cheffeur got out and greeted the girl in purple with a bow. "Mistress Marivel, your car is ready."

"Thank you." Marivel smiled as she got on the car, followed by the two girls. "To Tokyo-6, please."

* * *

"Ok…so my task is to go out and gather the other cards?" Takato asked. "Uhh…why?" 

"The more cards you have, the larger your fighting force, thus the stronger you are." Rayce said. "That simple."

"It's not exactly that simple." Motoko said. "Having many cards and summoning many people at the same time would mean having to spread the manna drain, resulting in more people with weaker fighting powers. Off course, Keitarou was able to summon everyone with maximum fighting power, so it really depends of the card master's own ability."

"Then…why was it we had to gather the cards again?" Rayce asked, smiling as he scratched the back of his head.

"Idiot, don't open your mouth if you don't know anything." Motoko said. "The thing is, we mustn't let any of the cards fall into the hands of the darkness. Otherwise, it would mean complete disaster. And no, Rayce, this is one thing you shouldn't try out." Motoko said, as Rayce reached out for a card.

"And, off course, gathering the cards would mean less freaks like that friend of yours, Toji, who'd go out and kill other card masters just to get his hands on more cards." Rayce said.

"That too…" Motoko nodded.

"Hmm…I guess it's rather complicated." Takato said, scratching his head. "But we have absolutely no leads on where to go to find these cards…I mean, I found your cards in an antiques store."

"An antiques store, huh? That's pretty sad." Rayce said.

"Just be happy it wasn't a vending machine or a pawn shop…now that would be truly pathetic." Motoko said, sipping her tea. "Though for you, some sort of carnival fortune teller's stall would have sufficed."

"Ok, plan of action, card master?" Rayce asked, looking up at Takato.

"Sleep. It's getting too dark and foggy outside to go out. The temperatures outside could drop dangerously low at night, even with the biodome." Takato said. "I don't know if you guardian souls sleep or not, but if you want, Rayce, you can sleep in that room over there. That's the guest room." Takato gestured at a room at the far end of the corridor. "And Motoko could use that room over there. That's supposed to be my sisters' room, but they hardly use it. They normally sleep in my futon cupboard." Takato said, gesturing at the room. "The futons are in the cupboard, and I suppose you guys know where everything else is."

"Thank you." Motoko said, getting up. "But I think I will stand guard for tonight. We never know…there might be more card masters out there and they might be out hunting for cards."

"But you should rest. The alarms are all in place, and no one can enter the building without going through the security doors downstairs." Takato said.

"Security doors?" Motoko asked, scoffing.

"Downstairs?" Rayce laughed.

"Knowing people like Kaede, they'd just go straight for your bedroom window." Motoko said. "They don't bother with things like security doors. And you can forget downstairs…"

"Yeah, I mean, freaks like them never bother with conventional things like stairs." Rayce nodded.

"Look who's talking." Motoko closed her eyes and sipped her tea.

"As I said, the fogs down really thick and no one would be crazy enough to venture out into the cold. It could drop as far down as -7 to -12 at night." Takato said. "Not to mention, there have been more occurrences of wasteland monster break-ins during the night…apparently the biodome weakens during the dark hours."

"I'll stand guard." Motoko said, resolutely.

"Very well then, have it your way." Rayce said, walking away. "I'm hitting the sack. Night night."

"Motoko…" Takato said, reaching out.

"Get some sleep…" Motoko said, in a stern and final voice. "NOW!"

"Y…yes ma'am!" Takato stammered, before running off to his room.

Motoko sighed and looked up at the rising moon through the thick layer of fog and clouds. "Keitarou-kun…Nata-chan…"

* * *

"Motoko-san, tea?" Takato offered. The living room lights had automatically dimmed itself at exactly 10 PM. Motoko sat on the carpet in the half-light, looking up at the moon. 

"Why haven't you gone to sleep yet?" Motoko asked with a frown as she took the cup of tea he offered.

"I…can't sleep…thinking about all this." Takato said, sitting down beside her. "It's such a big thing…such a big responsibility." Takato closed his eyes.

"I understand…not everyone would be ready to risk their lives for something so unsure." Motoko sighed.

"But…I really…I really feel that I must go out and accomplish this task." Takato said, looking at Motoko.

"Huh?" Motoko asked.

"I'm…I'm afraid…yes…the whole idea is frightening. But…my parents used to tell me, Hikari, and Himari stories about the world before it froze up…stories about forests, fields of flowers under the bright blue sky…dandelions flying up in the spring breeze, the beautiful sparkle of the rain…all stories past down from their parents. Hikari and Himari wanted to see all that…see it all for themselves. And I promised them, Motoko-san, I promised them I would show them all that someday. I want to let them live in a bright, warm, and beautiful world. You said that if I could end this war, warmth and light would return to this world, right?"

"Yes…or at least, that's the theory." Motoko said, taking a sip of tea.

"But…when I look at myself…I start to think…can I really do it? I've never accomplished anything in my life…always the worst of my class…never achieved any academic or athletic acknowledgements…" Takato looked down. "I start to think…am I the right person to undertake such a grand task? To save the world?"

"A man once told me…" Motoko said, closing her eyes. "If you put your mind to it, you could accomplish anything."

"Oh?" Takato asked.

"Yes…that man saved my life so many times…whenever I was down, ready to give up, he would come and cheer me up. I always prided myself in being strong and independent…but…I had so many weaknesses…I feared myself and feared those around me. But he came and cured me of those weaknesses, and gave me the strength to…well… live. I mean, live for real…" Motoko said, looking up at the moon. "I miss him so…"

"It was…your husband…wasn't it?" Takato said.

"Yes…Keitarou Urashima…" She took out the photograph and showed it to Takato. "That's him…and my daughter, Hinata." She pointed out the smiling figures. "I remember you said, back when I was possessed, 'if I put my mind to it, I could accomplish anything.'" She smiled. "That reminded me so much of my husband."

"Really?" Takato asked.

"I must…thank you…for saving my life today…twice…" Motoko said, quietly.

"But…it was my fault you ended up wandering around outside in the first place. And it was my fault you ended up drawing out that sword without enough manna energy to control the seal." Takato said.

"Stop blaming yourself, for stupid things like that. I chose to do all those things…jeez, you're so similar to him." Motoko huffed. Suddenly, the phone rang.

"Huh? At 2 AM at night? Who could that be?" Takato asked walking over to the phone and picking it up. "Hello?"

"Takato…Takato, please…th…there's someone or something trying to b…break into the store…grandpa's out tonight and…and…" a panicked voice whispered from the other side.

"Sakura?" Takato asked, recognizing the voice. "Sakura, stay in your room and lock it. Call the police, I'll be there right away. Don't worry and stay quiet."

"P…please hurry…Takato…" Sakura whispered. Takato replaced the receiver and ran to his room to get a change of clothes.

"Motoko-san! Please wake up Rayce-san, I'm going to need his help, and put on something warm from the coat cupboard!" Takato shouted, pulling on his active thermal coat. "It's going to be really cold out there, so wear one of my active thermal coats." Motoko immediately did as he said without any questions.

"H…hey…is it breakfast time already?" Rayce asked, absent-mindedly pulling on a coat at random. He struggled as he tried to zip it up. "Hey…this is a kid's coat…not only that…it's a girl's…"

"Hurry! I'm sorry, but I'm going to need to ask for your help, guys." Takato said, going out the front door.

"Urusai, baka. Get moving! Motoko shouted, pushing Rayce out the door and closing it behind her. She opened it again a few moments later and reached for the metal pipe stored in the umbrella stand before closing the door again.

* * *

They ran down through the thick, choking fog, their own breaths rising into stifling white clouds in front of them. The snow was thick and heavy under their feet, slowing them down significantly. "Stay behind me." Takato said. It went without saying, getting lost in the fog in the dark would be seriously unpleasant, especially at this temperature. Takato had checked the thermometer before leaving. It was -5 degrees Celsius outside, barely tolerable, even in their active thermal coats. 

"There it is." Takato said, pointing before them at the Corner Antiques store. It was dark inside, but Takato could already see that the door had been broken into. "Hurry!"

As they crept up to the front door, they heard a few faint footsteps and the sound of glass breaking and things being overturned. A voice asked, "where are those cards?"

Takato gestured at them to remain quiet and follow him as he crept through the front door. He used the tall counter by the door as a cover as he tried to look around. A tall figure stood in the darkness, holding onto another figure. Another figure seemed to be rummaging through the items in the room. A faint light was floating around the second figure.

"I'm asking you, where are those cards!" The first figure asked, raising his voice slightly. Apparently it was a he.

"I…I don't know…we don't stock such cards…" Sakura's voice came from the direction of the figure being held by the first figure. "Please…I don't know anything…"

"…liar…" the man said, slamming her into a wall. "I'll ask you nicely just one more time…where are those cards…"

Takato gestured at Rayce and pointed at a collection of bamboo spears. Rayce sighed as both he and Takato grasped one each and crept around the store in the direction of the two figures. Rayce went for the one who was holding onto Sakura while Takato went for the other.

As they approached they raised their weapons, ready to bring hell down on…nothing? Their targets suddenly re-appeared behind them, smirking. Takato and Rayce slowly turned around…Sakura just slapped a hand to her face in exasperation.

SMASH…

"Oh my…glass shards do look beautiful in the moonlight…" Rayce remarked as a multitude of razor sharp glass shards clustered around him, following him in his short flight over the snow laden street.

Takato's flight, meanwhile, was a lot shorter. It was a one way trip into the wall…and a short slide down into the pile of junk (which Sakura stubbornly regards as antiques…well, she did. Now it's just junk). A large tanuki doll fell on his head as a whole shelf tumbled down on him.

"Well, well, well…another card master…and this one seems to have plenty of cards…" A young man strode over to Takato's upside down form amidst the junk. "And you've even taken the trouble to come and hand them over to me…how nice…"

"Get back!" Takato shouted, raising his weapon…a white moth-eaten squirrel doll…

Both Takato and the man stared at the doll for a moment.

"Oopps…excuse me…" Takato dropped the doll and rummaged around while still staring into the man's eyes. "Ah ha…" He shouted in triumph as he raised his weapon…which went 'myuu'…

Both he and the man stared at the waving turtle for a moment…before the man lost patience and picked up Takato by the collar.

"Stay away from him, foul fiend, or I'll…!" Motoko shouted, raising her…metal rod.…

"Or what, Urashima-san?" A dark-skinned figure stepped in front of her…the same figure who had sent Rayce on his short low altitude aerial tour.

"Tatsumiya!" Motoko gasped, taking a step backwards.

SMASH….SMASH…

"Hey, how nice of you guys to join me…" Rayce said, spitting out a few glass shards from his horizontal position in the snow as two more bodies smashed out in a shower of glass shards and skid into the snow beside him. "Hey…check this out…if you just take a little snow and put a little of this here chocolate syrup on it…" Rayce said, taking out a bit of chocolate syrup in a bottle.

"Hey, that's Hikari and Himari's!" Takato shouted, getting up from his bed of glass and snow.

"Enough of that now…" Motoko said.

"You got beaten up, Motoko?" Rayce asked. "Hey, Takato, just check this out for a moment."

"Idiot, I don't have enough manna for proper combat. Hey, Takato, stop being stingy with manna!" Motoko shouted, grasping her….metal rod… and leaping back into a standing position. "Takato…I'm seriously getting fed up of being beaten around by an upstart mercenary, just cause all I have is a metal rod…" Takato also slowly raised himself from the snow.

"Hel…hel…hy hongue ith thuck…" Rayce cried out.

"What did he say?" Takato asked, pointing at Rayce who seemed to be slamming his head into the snow repeatedly.

"He said his tongue is stuck. That's what you get for trying all sorts of weird stuff, you idiot…" Motoko said, raising her…metal rod… for battle.

"Hahahahaha…so…it's only a little kid…hey…it's you, isn't it? Takato?" The young man asked, coming out of the store, an antique rapier in one hand. "Mwahahaha…I eat pipsqueaks like you for tea…" He laughed maniacally, licking his rapier… "Ugh…agh…hy hongue ith thuck thoo…hamn…hamn!" He cried out.

"What did he just say?" Takato asked, pointing at the man who was now bent double over his rapier.

"Let's just say…he's just as idiotic and pathetic…wait…maybe more so than Rayce…" Motoko sighed.

"…Hana! Hana! Hake Hem Outh!" The man shouted, as he tried to pull on the blade, only succeeding in slamming it into his head a number of times as atmospheric thermodynamics tested the elasticity of his tongue to the limit. "Ar huu aghing ah me! Oock huu!" He shouted, or at least he tried. He ended up biting his tongue in the process and yelled "OOCK! OOCK!" in pain.

"What did he say?" Takato asked again, pointing once more at the man who was now repeatedly banging his head onto the old rapier while gesturing Mana to go and attack. Mana just watched in a politely interested manner.

"I don't think anyone would want that last part interpreted…" Motoko said. "I think the fanfic would lose its T rating…" She crossed her arms and sighed.

* * *

Meanwhile, in an alternate dimension… 

Beyond the Bounds paused as his fingers hovered over his keyboard…he spun around in his seat and pulled out a copy of the contents restrictions from fanfic .com and checked it…nope…that last part still conformed with the rules….was that a little too random though? But he decided that being an insane retard once in a while doesn't matter. After all, what can you do after 3 cups of strong coffee? He immediately turns down the aircon's temperature further in order to keep in line with story's atmosphere…

* * *

"All right…playtime's over…" Mana said, digging her boots into the snow in her usual fighting stance. She raised one arm towards Motoko and gestured for her to attack. "Come…let's settle the Tatsumiya and Shinmei temple affairs of the past right here, right now. Not that I care, but it makes a nice little dramatic backdrop to our fight." 

"…it's your challenge then…it will be your shame should you lose." Motoko said, holding her metal rod at the ready….metal rod… "TAKATO! GET ME A PROPER WEAPON!" she shouted as a vein finally popped on her forehead.

To be continued….

Behind the scenes…

BTB: Konichiwa! Yoroshiku, ne! Beyond The Bounds desu! Watashiwa…er…amateur/beginner fanfiction writer…ehem…please excuse the poor Japanese. Here's my first appearance here in Soul Requiem's 'behind the scenes'. So far, I've been playing around with ideas for the MotxKei fic and the ShixKei fic, but I'm also thinking of branching out and trying other pairings…problem is, I don't know what kinds of pairings readers would like.

Naru: Hey, BTB, I want a version of my own!

Mitsune: Yeah! Me too!

Suu: Yeah! Suu-chan wants one too! A version's something edible, right!

BTB: hahaha…don't worry…er…we'll see what happens…ok?

Kanako: BTB-san…I want one… (appears behind BTB with a katana held around BTB's neck.)

BTB: eeeeep….ahahahaha…can't we talk nicely about this…

Takato: Oh…how lucky…I get to star in so many cool stories with so many cute female co-stars….hehehehehehe…

Hikari & Himari: Oniichan!

Motoko: Allow me to slash him in two and feed him to the turtles…especially for kissing me…

Mitsune: Who is that kid anyway?

BTB: Uhh…just some random character.

Lee: By the way, what are you planning on doing about all those grammar and syntax mistakes you've been making.

BTB: Ah, yes, grammar mistakes. That's why I'm going to start advertising for proof-readers…preferably proof-readers who are willing to proof-read chapters from Love Hina Alternative, Soul Requiem, and New Mobile Suit Project Gundam Hina Eternity. I'll probably take on two proof-readers…also, as an added offer, anyone who agrees to proof-read will get the chance to guest-star in Omakes, 'Behind the scene' episodes, intermissions, and perhaps even in the stories themselves from time to time.

Tsuroko: Good luck, Motoko. It's so good to finally see you achieve your dreams.

Motoko: But unfortunately the setting's some sort of futuristic waste land…where Keitarou's supposedly already long gone. I haven't even met Keitarou even once during the entire production. Even if I do meet him…

Suu: He's gonna be a zombie…mwahahaha( does a zombie impersonation)

Shinobu: Baka Suu! That can't happen. Keitarou-sempai…Keitarou-sempai…sniff…sniff…(tears well up in her eyes)

Naru: Where is he, anyway?

BTB: He's out making one of the big scenes for the next chapter of 'Love Hina Alternative'

Makie: BTB-san! Please tell us more about the next Soul Requiem and Love Hina Alternative

BTB: Well, if you're that interested, then I'll show you a preview of Love Hina Alternative chapter 7! Here we go!

Rayce: The following preview has been approved to be suitable for all ages by the motion pictures association of….

Mitsune: Shut up and get going.

BTB: Action!

_I'm a goofy goober yeah, you're a goofy goober yeah, we're all goofy goobers YEAH!_

BTB: What the heck?

Rayce: Yeah! Sponge Bob!

Mitsune: Someone shoot him and put on the real stuff.

Black Cat OST Daia No Hana, sung by Yoriko

Hajimari wa itsumo sou (The beginning's always the same)

Keitarou stands on top of the Hinata Sou and looks up at the moon as thousands of sakura petals fly up into the sky.

Gunjou no sora no shita (beneath the blue sky)

Shinobu and Nodoka are seen from behind, wind whipping around them, their clothes flying with the wind.

Chikai wo tatete ima boku wa (for the promise, I am now)

Silhouttes of a boy and a girl turn around at the end of a street

Aruki dasu (walking ahead)

The camera turns around 180 degrees to show Keitarou, Nodoka, and Shinobu walking down the street

Interlude 1

Keitarou spins around with his SOCOM in one hand. The title screen starts to fly across the screen

Interlude 2

Nodoka and Shinobu reload their guns as they run beside the title screen.

Interlude 3

Above, a number of silhouettes leap over the title screen and land running beside Nodoka, Shinobu, and Keitarou

Interlude 4

A few more silhouettes join them as the title screen shows the title 'Love Hina Alternative'

Kin iro ni hikaru sabaku (at the desert that glitters like gold) moeru kaze (burning wind)

Three silhouettes stand on top of a store in Market Street, the full moon behind them, their clothes flowing with the wind.

Daiyu no hana wo sagashite (I'm looking for a diamond flower) samayoi tsuzukeru (wandering on and on)

Rayce walks down the street, a shadow across his face. Two other silhouettes follow closely behind him.

Hajimete dareka no tameni(this is the first time that)

Keitarou stands with his back to the camera. He looks around and raises his hand towards the screen. Nodoka and Shinobu stand in the shadows, looking out at him.

Ima boku wa ikete iru(I am living for someone)

The twins run up to Keitarou. Meanwhile, three other silhouettes watch them.

Mamoritai mono ga arunda(There's something I want to protect)

The scene shows Market Avenue seen from the sky. Makie winks an eye at the screen and throws out a blazing ribbon as she free falls down towards the city. Tsuroko and Motoko follow after, slashing their katanas at the screen. Mana follows, spinning around before firing a shot at the screen. Ku Fei follows, throwing her two chakrams at the screen. Kaede follows close behind, with a flurry of shurikens.

Mou nido to nido to ushinai wa shinai(That I never, never want to lose again)

Sarah falls down from the shining sun, followed closely behind by Suu (with her usual heavy launcher), Shana (with katana blazing), Fumika and Fuuka (with machine guns out) Mutsumi (with a battalion of Tamas), Yuna (with sakura petals orbiting around her), Yotsuba (with frying pans), Akira (with water bubbles floating around her) and Zazie (with a battalion of phantoms)

Narihibike dare yori chiisaku hakanai(let the beat of your heart carry on)

(Camera flies across Market Avenue as if blowing with the wind, showing each of the following characters) Haruna with a book (the pages flipping rapidly), Misora (with her two guns out), Ako (with her hands shining bright), Chao (throwing a salute), Ayaka (with a rose in one hand), Yue (with her back to the camera, her head turned to the camera), and Shiina (winking).

Dare yori tafu na kono kodou(strong and fragile but stronger than anything)

(Camera pans across characters standing on a moonlit rooftop) Naru (hands crossed), Grandma Hina, Seta (hands in his pockets), Takamichi (hands in his pockets), Haruka (smoking), The Gothiloli Kamens (hands on their hips), Mitsune (leaning back on a chimney), Shirai and Haitani (throwing casual salutes), Chizuru (looking up at the sky), and Natsume(smiling at the screen).

Ending 1

(Camera pans across characters) Fate, and a number of silhouettes move across the screen.

Ending 2

Keitarou, Nodoka, and Shinobu sits atop the Hinata Sou, with the sun setting before them. The other Market Avenue characters appear behind them.

Ending 3

Scene shows all the characters standing before the sunset.

BTB: As for Soul Requiem, I don't know what I'm going to do next yet…but I can promise this. If I do continue the MotxKei version, I'll be introducing another new card in the next chapter.

Shinobu: Anou...anou...what about my version? Why did I have to show up as a...

Spectre Shinobu: _Schizophrenic whacko?_

Shinobu: Kyaaaaaaaaa! It's here!

Spectre Shinobu: _Nuhuhuhuhuhuhu...I've come for you..._

Rayce: REST IN PEACE (slashes Spectre Shinobu with his scythe) errr...it doesn't work, does it?

Spectre Shinobu: _Was I supposed to feel that?_

Suu: NYAHAHAHAHAHA (leaps onto the scene carrying ghostbuster equipment)

Motoko: DIE DEMON!

Heero Yuy: Mission received, executing (Wing Zero lands in the studio)

Chao: (Lands in the gundam Duel) Where's the action, yo!

Naru: Can we ever have a normal ending...(sighs as the studio behind her explodes into chaos as a few Mobile Suits from Project Gundam Hina Eternity, the Hinata Garden and Ragnarok from Final Hina Fantasy, and even the Gothiloli Kamens from Love Hina Alternative with their Team Rocket Motto, show up.)

BTB: I guess...nope...(as the ohayo-maru from Love Hina Children of the Exodus bounces onto the screen, ticking, before exploding and sending the everyone's living crap to oblivion)


	6. Chapter 5MotxKei version

Note: I'm off for the summer holidays so I pretty much hurried this update. There's a chance I won't be able to update at all while I'm away, but expect fresh updates by the end of the summer. My apologies to those of you who volunteered to proof-read. Due to the circumstances, I was afraid there won't be enough time for a proper proof-read. But no worries. The updates after summer will all be proof-read, and I'll be counting on you volunteers. Thanks again for volunteering.

disclaimer: I don't own Love Hina or Mahou Sensei Negima

Chapter 5: Turtles

* * *

What people thought of snow…it was largely dependent on the person. To some it meant…beauty, splendour, pureness, or, on a most basic level, white. To some it meant more snow removal jobs. To some, such as Takato Hayamura, it currently meant things were far too slippery to move around properly. And in his situation, he was definitely less than enthusiastic about it. In fact, he decided to curse snow hereafter as he slipped and fell backwards into the snow as he tried to run back to pick up his weapon.

Meanwhile, in front of him, Motoko was trying to get to grips with metal rod combat. Unfortunately, getting to grips with the most Neanderthal of weapons was not as easy as it looked. For one thing, what happened to aerodynamics? Didn't people who invent metal rods ever think of the aerodynamics of the weapon? Or probably the weight distribution…oh wait…that's why they came up with swords in the first place.

Mana was skillfully playing her advantage in range to the fullest. Her twin desert eagles flashed bright in the darkness as it sent lead shredders straight at Motoko. The best she could do was to try to defend with her more than modest weapon. Bright sparks flew everywhere as hot lead made contact with cold steel. After the first 14 bullets, all barely deflected by Motoko's metal-rod-substitute-swordplay, Mana released the lock on her magazines and threw them out into the snow, while swishing both guns towards the magazine holders on her belt.

Rayce meanwhile, who had somehow managed to get his tongue released from his frosty dessert, had grasped his bamboo spear as well as Takato's as he skid past him and leaped into the air. He came down, just as Mana locked two fresh magazines into her Desert Eagles. "Hyaaaaaaaaaaah!" Rayce shouted, executing an overhead slash with one spear, which Mana neatly avoided with a quick backwards leap. Rayce followed through with another horizontal slash with his other spear, which Mana merely sidestepped.

Motoko meanwhile, in a frantic search for a proper weapon, had finally spotted one. Mana's cardmaster, who was frantically trying to pry the rapier off his tongue, suddenly started making gurgling sounds as he noticed the fiery-eyed samurai charging in his direction, with every intention of delivering pure pain. He picked up a makeshift weapon…a baseball bat that had rolled out into the street from the antique store, to try and ward off Motoko. Motoko meanwhile was dragging her metal rod along the street, causing sparks to fly everywhere as she built up force for her ground-strike jutsu.

"Shinmei-ryu! Suna Rendan Battou-Jutsu!" Motoko shouted, as the metal rod left the earth and flew out at the man, knocking his baseball bat clean out of his hands, as well as knocking his teeth out along with it. As the man fell, Motoko grasped the rapier which parted with his tongue with a painful ripping sound, one you might hear when your favourite manga gets ripped in two.

Rayce had successfully knocked one of Mana's guns into the air as he slashed out a spear upwards at her. He delivered a thrust with the other one, which Mana avoided with a quick sideways twist of her body. She caught the extended spear and whirled around it, holding both its end and its middle. Rayce just stared as Mana suddenly hefted the entire spear upwards, carrying Rayce along with it. "Gaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrghhhhhhhhh-mffffffffff" Rayce's scream of terror as he soared through in the short arch was cut off abruptly as he slammed into the snow.

Mana didn't have a moment to relax. As she released Rayce's spear and caught her falling gun, Motoko's rapier came out of nowhere, threatening to cut her in two had she not spun out of the way in time. She parried the next horizontal rapier slash with her right gun, while pointing her left one straight at Motoko. Motoko hefted her rapier upwards, flinging Mana's arm upwards, causing her to shoot up into the air. Motoko executed a few more assaults, all of which were successfully parried and evaded by Mana, who's shots were as successfully parried and evaded by Motoko.

Suddenly, Mana spun backwards, flinging one of her guns into the air. Motoko, who was watching Mana's other gun, ready to deflect any bullets, was caught unawares of two small whizzing objects which painfully collided with her stomach. As she fell to her knees in pain while clutching her stricken abdomen, she looked up at Mana and caught a final glimpse of the weapon that had just struck her…a pile of coins in Mana's hands, just before it slipped into her pockets.

"Who said war was cheap, ne?" Mana asked, catching her other gun as it descended. "Soldiers don't win wars. Money does." She lifted the gun and aimed it straight at Motoko. "Sorry, Aoyama…victory's mine." She squeezed the trigger.

"My name's….Urashima…" Motoko wheezed, as she tried to stand up, clutching her stomach. She raised her rapier.

BANG….

"Huh?" Mana's shot, according to her calculations, would miss her by a full two meters…no way! What was she aiming at…then it dawned on her. She looked behind her in terror as she realized it was flying straight at Takato. "Takato!" She gritted her teeth and launched herself at the bullet.

"Motoko!" Takato shouted as he tried to run forwards. Something flashed within his coat pockets.

Something spun out of thin air and collided with the bullet, sending sparks everywhere. It spun around back into the air and slowed down into a hover.

"Is that…" Takato asked, looking up at the metallic looking object.

"…a turtle…?" Sakura asked, peeking out of her store.

"TAKE COVER! IT'S HER!" Rayce screamed, diving headlong into a trash can.

"No…way…" Mana said.

"Takato! Get off the street!" Motoko shouted, scrabbling up from where she had landed.

"Huh?" Takato asked, as a flashing card spun around in front of him. He caught it as it slowed down. On its front was the picture of a young girl in a dark blue senior high sailor's uniform. "What?"

Something flashed up in the sky. Takato looked up just in time to see a number of flashes approaching, just before Motoko grabbed him by the collar and threw him into the store before following right behind him.

Mana raised her guns and aimed. She shot the nearest flash that was heading straight towards her…it exploded into a huge crimson fireball. Meanwhile, all around her, the other flashes collided with the frozen earth, exploding into raging infernos.

"Missiles?" Takato asked.

"Those look like…metal turtles…" Sakura remarked, slightly awed by the fireworks display.

"There's only one person mad enough to make self-destructing turtle-like mechas and send them hurtling towards the earth that randomly…" Motoko sighed, as a nearby explosion shook the store.

"Mana! What's happening!" Mana's cardmaster asked.

"Calm down, master. It's another card."

Takato looked down at his card as it started shaking. It was undergoing another transformation as the clothes on the girl in the picture started to transform into…some sort of tropical native costume? How practical for this weather…

The missile barrage continued, but now it was accompanied by a flurry of random positron cannon shots. Mana threw her master into a nearby alleyway and aimed up at the sky. "Come out…I know you're up there…"

Something gigantic and round was silhouetted against the inferno lit up sky. It seemed to grow larger with each passing second.

"There you are…" Mana started firing up at the silhouette. Small sparks flashed as her bullets bounced harmlessly off the gigantic object. "What…is that?" She gasped, as she realized her bullets were useless against whatever it was. She took a few steps backwards before finally leaping completely out of the way as the gigantic metallic object slammed into the snow, sending violent shockwaves through the ground.

The large metallic object raised about 5 inches off the surface of the impact crater it had created. A smaller figure landed lightly on top of its dome-like top. The missile and laser barrage had stopped completely.

"No doubt about it…it's her…" Mana said, getting onto her feet.

"No doubt…Her?" Takato echoed Mana's words.

"Who's….her?"

"Yes…it's her all right…" Motoko sighed.

"The Defender of the Galaxy has arrived!" the figure atop the gigantic metallic object shouted, her native costume flowing with the gentle breeze. A horde of small metallic turtles flew around her, all creating a general hum of 'myus'. The large metallic object underneath her lit up as a number of large headlamps illuminated the surrounding street. It was apparently a huge metallic turtle.

"The mecha Tama MK IV…" Rayce mumbled as his trash can rolled into the store. "I can still remember getting pummeled by that…"

"Wouldn't she freeze to death in that?" Takato asked, pointing at the girl.

"No…she won't,

"And now…time to DIE!" The girl laughed hysterically as she raised an arm towards Mana. The entire street lit up for a few moments…

Before everything went dark…

To be continued…

* * *

My apologies for the short chapter. Time's not on my side, as usual. As I said, I was trying to rush this chapter to make the before-holidays update. Next chapter will be longer, yakusoku!

OMAKE! OMAKE! (SPECIAL SUMMER BATTLE ROYALE EDITION)

The cast from 'Love Hina: Children of the Exodus', 'Final Hina Fantasy', 'New Mobile Suit Gundam Hina Eternity', 'Love Hina Alternative', 'Soul Requiem', and 'Forevermore', gathers around a campfire in a small summer campsite.

Keitarou: We actually made it to this chapter…in a space of only a couple of months…my, you've been busy.

BTB: HAhahaha…hard work's my middle name!

Asuna: And 'grammar mistakes'…

Lee: And 'cliché'

Rayce: Not to mention 'obviously out'

BTB: Ok…what have I done wrong this time?

Lee: We're having a bit of an issue with the 6 stories you're writing…

BTB: What exactly is the issue?

Naru: The fact that there ARE 6 stories. I mean, what kind of fanfiction writer could manage to juggle 6 stories?

Mitsune: Not to mention 2 different versions of Soul Requiem…that makes it 7 stories.

BTB: Errr….I guess I did mess up a bit there…

Haruka: You'll have to prioritize. Choose one to focus on and finish it off first.

BTB: Errr…how should I decide? I mean, I like all of them just as much…

Motoko: Well, BTB, it's definitely Soul Requiem, my version, isn't it? (Unsheaths katana an inch)

Shinobu: Anou…anou…demou…can we please make it Love Hina Children of the Exodus? I like that one.

Rayce: Hey! Hey! I like my part in New Mobile Suit Gundam Hina Eternity! Let's continue that one! It's the most epic anyway!

Tsuroko: Oro…but I think BTB's got plenty of good ideas for 'Forevermore'. Let's continue that.

Nodoka: Anou….can it please be…aah…Love Hina Alternative?

Makie: Yeah, definitely. I like Love Hina Alternative! It's the best! We get to live together like that! What can be more fun!

Kaede: Zazie says she likes Final Hina Fantasy best, de gozaruyo. (Zazie stands in the background, the infamous T-rexaur beside her.)

Naru: Well…you've gotten us into quite a mess, haven't you, BTB? Now what?

BTB: I dunno. Vote, perhaps?

The votes were tabulated…

Asuna: They're all…equal…

Setsuna: What a coincidence…

Fumika: Now what?

Fuuka: Let's just fight!

Rayce: Let's decide this with a contest.

Fuuka: Yeah! A fight! A fight!

Rayce: Contest rules: Everyone forms groups according to the story they're supporting. Every group may use the abilities they have in the story they chose. For example, since Shinobu-chan has chosen the 'Love Hina Children of the Exodus', she's allowed to use her white mage abilities.

Haruka: Interesting…what kind of contest will it be? (everyone separates out into different corners of the large field that suddenly materialized according to each group. They all start preparing their stuff.)

Rayce: Yagyu Janken…(baseball janken, from Mahou Sensei Negima)

Asuna: IDIOT! (busts Rayce on the head with a paper fan)

Lee: Then let's make it a quick game of janken (rocks, papers, and scissors) and get it over with. (everyone face faults) BTB-san?

BTB: Yeah, whatever.

Lee: All right, everyone, JANKEN!

Everyone: JANKEN! (nobody wins in the end. Frustrated, everyone starts fighting. All hell breaks out as magical spells, positron laser blasts, phantoms, katanas, and even mobile suits fly about.)

Tama: mii

BTB: As Tamago said, please wait while the democratic decision making takes place. As you can see, Love Hina has a very good idea of democracy. It's power to the masses. It's especially useful when the said masses are at gunpoint. Now, since we're out of time, we'll have to skip the battle-royale scene. Sorry…

After a long and grueling fight….

Haruka: Nothing was resolved, BTB…

BTB: No worries, I've decided the story I'm going to continue anyway.

Everyone: WHICH ONE!

BTB: 'The Amazing Adventures of Urashima Hinata-chan!'

Everyone (with the exception of pacifists such as Shinobu and Nodoka): NANI!

Hinata-chan: Yatta! Arigatou, BTB-san!

Motoko: Can't be….beaten by a 7 year old!

Naru: BTB….(eyes flash)

Everyone (with the exception of pacifists such as Shinobu and Nodoka): Let's kill him instead.

BTB: Haha! I'm ready for this, this time! Which is why I brought this! Transform! (takes out a ninja scroll which explodes into a cloud of smoke. After the cloud of smoke dissipates, BTB was gone, leaving a log in his stead.

Motoko: as if we'd fall for that. (unsheathes katana)

Rayce: let's kill him. (takes out Scythe)

Naru: Yeah…(puts on gloves)

Everyone(with the exception of pacifists such as Shinobu and Nodoka): (bears down on the log, which sweat-drops. They start beating up the log.)

Lee: All right, everyone! Please have an enjoyable summer holiday and remember not to try this at home. See you after the summer! Thanks for your support so far!

Everyone: Till next time!


	7. Chapter 7MotxKei version

In 1998, a young 19 year old boy arrived at an inn. Through a bizarre turn of events he was made its owner and manager. He learned many things there. One of them was to always respect a girl's privacy. Another was probably a love for archaeology and martial arts. He ended up marrying one of his tenants, which was all right. He earned himself a 'happily ever after' of sorts. This isn't his story….

115 years later, another boy, somewhat younger, stood in the middle of the street over which that particular inn had overlooked back in 1998. A narrow beam of red celestial light had burst down from the clouds and illuminated a card he was holding. The card was shaking as some strange force was coursing through it. He was young. He was inexperienced. He was infinitely scared out of his wits. This is his story…

* * *

Chp6: Angel Advent

Hi, my name's Zenithos-chan. Since Beyond the Bounds will be particularly busy until the end of the year due to university applications, exams and such, I'll be taking over his stories for the time being, so Yoroshiku Onegaishimasu! I'm not as experienced as he is, so every bit of help, support, and advice is completely welcome. Thank you everyone!

The first part of this chapter was written by BTB. I continued the rest.

Disclaimer: I don't own Love Hina or Mahou Sensei Negima. The story idea belongs to Beyond the Bounds.

Proof-read by Beyond the Bounds

Please review! It's my first time writing a chapter for Soul Requiem, so please tell me what you think.

* * *

ZAAAP…'seriously, there's got to be a repairman here somewhere. I wanna file a complaint against bad transmission reception!'

His vision was again blurry and grainy, with little coherence in anything he saw.

"Keitaro…Life is always a journey. It's the proof of your existence. So take it one step at a time and enjoy it." A bright fire roared brightly in front of him, creating an island of light besieged by the darkness. It lit up a warm, friendly face who was sitting opposite him.

"B…but…Seta-san…what about Tokyo-U…I can't keep on failing like this." He heard a voice say.

"Don't worry about things like that. Take it easy. When it comes it comes. All you can do is do your best. For now, take your journey step by step."

Everything faded into darkness. In the distance a flicker of light lit up. Suddenly, streams of sights blew outwards from the point of light. In the streams he saw glimpses of rooms, temples, carnivals, pavements, parks, beaches…before finally everything slowed down and came to a stop.

Before him was again darkness. Suddenly, a shaft of light cut downwards across the gloom and slowly widened as a deep groaning sound shook the ground on which he stood. It was apparently a door. He reached out for the light, wanting so desperately to get out of the gloom.

"Keitaro!" A voice called out from behind him. He turned around out of reflex. He wasn't sure who was being called but he felt he must answer the call.

"Keitaro!" The voice sounded distant, almost ethereal. It echoed through the abyss as he stood on the brink before the door.

"Keitaro!" The door was still slowly opening. Suddenly, the bright light engulfed him and the surrounding darkness.

* * *

"Takato!" Everything swam before him. He tried to blink away the haziness. All his limbs felt numb. His head felt as heavy as lead. His eyelids were so heavy each blink felt like it took a Herculean effort.

He slowly tried to rise, trying to identify where he was and who just addressed him. Details started to filter slowly into his dimmed mind. He was in a room. There was quite a lot of snow on the ground, save in the middle of the room where a fire was burning. It was already burning low. What he identified to be Rayce was hacking some wood of a nearby dresser and throwing it into the dying fire. The remaining light danced across the ruined room and lit up the vestiges of what used to be a quaint little clothiers. A few desolate mannequins stood silent around them, quiet sentinels of the past.

Beside him, to one side, stood Motoko, trying to shake some life into him. "Wake up, Takato. It's already morning. We've got to get moving again." She said urgently.

It was glowing blue outside. Takato tightened his sleeping-bag around himself as he tried to stand up. He could actually feel his bones creak as he tried to stand up. The cold had gotten in every joint in his body.

"Hey, kid, we've got sausages for breakfast. Hurry up and get up." Rayce shouted to him.

"It's quite a wonder that you could actually wake up this early in the morning, Farelle." Motoko said.

"A certain somebody stiffed me for all night guard duty…need I explain further?" Rayce said testily, with a soft grumble, the likes of which is only heard from the opening of ICBM silos, aiming a glare up at Motoko. "Why didn't you get Suu to do it. It's not as if she ever sleeps."

"She did. Would you rather have taken care of her sleepwalking?" Motoko asked, her voice dripping with liquid hydrogen from a fusion reactor cooler.

"She sleepwalks?" Takato suddenly asked. Rayce flinched at the thought.

"No, thanks." Rayce decided, without a hint of hesitation. "All-night guard-duty sounds nicer than sleeping. Yep. Any day."

"Anyway, speaking of Suu…where is she?" Takato asked, looking about.

"Right here, snow-bozu!" Suu laughed as she landed on top of Takato.

"AAAAARRRRRRGHHHHH!" Takato cried, as every single stiff joint in his body screamed with the sudden pressure.

"Teehee…hey, what do you say I share the sleeping bag with you tonight?" Suu asked playfully, nuzzling her cheeks to his.

"Huh?" Takato asked, blushing.

"Whatever weird thoughts you're having, get rid of them. It's for your own good. Cause you'd NEVER want to sleep in the same room as Suu." The normally perverted Rayce Farelle said. "Is that understood? I'm saying this cause I'm a caring guardian." Rayce looked Takato in the eye.

"I think we should move out now…" Takato said, heaving Suu off his back, grabbing a sausage, before jumping about with the said sausage leaping around and burning his hands.

As they walked down the desolate frost covered post-apocalyptic city street, they couldn't help but feel aware of the dark pillar of smoke rising out of the city they had just left. They knew it was the product of a great fire. They knew the fire department probably hadn't put it out yet. They even knew that the fire had broke out on Market Avenue, just in front of the corner curios store. Heck, they even knew the source of the fire, a number of nuclear ICBMs coupled with ancient and powerful islander magic. They knew all this even though they were currently a couple of hundred kilometers away from the site with the distance still increasing.

Why do they know?

Because the fire was one of the reasons they were currently making all due haste away from the city, on foot, in the middle of the abandoned permafrost-ridden wasteland.

Sakura had said she didn't mind.

Her expression definitely said otherwise.

So did her actions.

Takato barely made it out with his head.

That aside, they had decided to make their way ASAP to the next city to find more cards and hopefully mitigate the dangers faced by the inhabitants of Tokyo-6 by these disastrous card games. They were, as said before, walking down a desolate frost-ridden street, remnants of an age before the great war. It was once known as Tokyo city. Now it was just a wasteland between Tokyo 6 and Tokyo 5.

Why were they walking, you ask?

"We're walking because a certain someone wrecked the subways, the only means of transport between the cities… remember?" Rayce asked, with a hint of malice.

"Farelle…if your death wish is that strong…" Motoko hissed, raising a hand to the blade slung on her back.

Takato walked on with Suu clinging onto his back as Rayce and Motoko started settling their differences cavemen-style. Rayce had found a handy old street-sign post along the way while Motoko still carried the rapier she had ripped off the other card-master's tongue the other night. Obviously, this made for a rather interesting battle.

"So…who destroyed the world?" Suu asked cheerfully.

"The Black wars…though I have no idea what exactly we were fighting against. I guess all that's left of the black legion are these monsters lurking about in the wasteland…" Takato answered. "Which is the main reason we shouldn't walk out in the wasteland. I wish we still had the subways though…the cold is another good reason to never venture out here…"

"Monsters…You mean those?" Suu asked, pointing. Sure enough, just a few hundred meters down the road were a horde of ugly, black, ugly, scaly, ugly, winged, and abominably ugly creatures. In fact, the word ugly just bypasses the optical nerves and goes straight to the back of the brain, frying every neuron along its way.

"Ok…Suu…could you do what you did last night?" Takato said, stiffening.

"But…you told Suu-chan never to use that again…" Suu said, hanging upside down over Takato's face.

"…now you can use it…it's urgent…" Takato whispered.

"Well…it isn't midnight…and there isn't a red moon either…" Suu said, scanning the sky for signs of the red moon, which off course, wasn't there. Though Suu's logic could convert toasters into nukes, it can't comprehend the day to day running of the world.

"…Right…then…everyone…be very…very quiet…." Takato whispered, stepping backwards ever so slowly. Just then, Motoko blasts Rayce straight into a nearby building that crumbled noisily behind them.

Takato sweat-dropped, big time.

The jet-black monsters turned their attention from idly standing around to them. Takato froze. Suu cooed with awe. Motoko turned her head around. Rayce winced as a brick fell on his head…

Two of the front-most monsters looked at one another…

What happened after happened without as much as a blink. Takato suddenly realized the ground was rapidly dropping away from him. He looked up. His mind made a quick orientation correction. HE was rising off the ground…gripped between the talons of one of the huge wyvern-like monsters. Beside him, shouting with delight, was Suu, gripped between the other set of talons.

"TAKATO!" Motoko shouted, slicing through one of the creatures. Rayce, meanwhile, was trying to ward off the fangs of another of the creatures with his metal post.

"Okies….do you want this bird photon-roasted, nuke-fried, or plasma-broiled?" Suu asked Takato. "I could also do a side of Hellfire missiles." She added after a thought.

"B…but…I don't have that much manna…" Takato said. The up and down motion of the creature's body and the flapping of the wings were making him nauseous. Around him were other wyvern-like creatures, swarming around the one holding him, all simultaneously trying to unburden it of its prize.

"No worries!" Suu laughed happily, reaching into a semi-circular pocket attached to the front of her clothes (if you're a true-blue anime lover, then you'd know that I'm referring to Doraemon's legendary magical pocket. Akamatsu-sensei himself made many allusions to Doraemon in Love Hina). She brought out…a set of firecrackers.

"You really are a weakling…" Suu pouted, looking at Takato.

"What's your problem!" Takato shouted. "You should be more thankful! Motoko only got a toothpick last time we tried!"

"But this'll do…" Suu said, lighting up her pathetic firecracker. "EAT THIS!" she threw it up in front of the creature's head…which instantly reared up and ate it.

"It actually ate it…" Takato sweat-dropped yet again.

"Now…a jet-pack, anti-g device, or at least, a parachute would be nice…" Suu smiled over at Takato. "Oh…not to mention this big guy's friends might want a piece of us too, so a rocket launcher might also come in handy…"

"NOW YOU TELL ME!" Takato shouted. Too late. The firecrackers exploded with a pop inside the creature's throat. It shrieked in surprise…or was it more of a sneeze? Either way, it resulted in Takato and Suu being suddenly released into freefall.

As if on queue, all the creatures in the sky dove along with them, snapping their jaws at them.

"Oh man…" Takato moaned.

"Hey…the kid's in trouble again…" Rayce said, practicing dentistry with one of the creatures on the ground with his metal post. A number of vicious looking fangs scattered across the floor as Rayce raised his metal post yet again.

"We won't make it in time…FARELLE!" Motoko shouted.

"Yes?" Rayce asked, looking around, before flinching. "N…no…you gotta be…"

"FLYING PERVERT ATTACK!" Motoko shouted, slamming the broadside of her rapier into Rayce, sending him screaming into the sky in Takato's direction.

"Going…going…going…" Motoko murmured, shielding her eyes against the light just enough to make out Rayce against the bright white sky. Suddenly, the small speck that was Rayce disappeared as it made contact with the jaws of one of the creatures. "Gone…" Motoko sighed.

"YAY!" Suu shouted.

"NOT YAY! THINK OF SOMETHING!" Takato shouted at her.

"Ummm…think of something like bananas?" Suu asked. A wyvern suddenly swooped out of the sky and snapped Suu out of her descent.

"We're dead…we're officially dead…" Takato sighed, as a dozen or so wyverns closed in on his position, baring their fangs.

* * *

FLASH…

Everything was suddenly dark again. The wyverns disappeared. He found himself once again within the dark abyss of his dreams.

"I've made a promise…you are hereafter the head of the Shinmei-ryu, therefore I shall devote my life to protecting you." A young woman with a small ponytail on one side said.

"But, we're still friends, aren't we?"

"Urashima-sama….your sentiment honours me too much…"

FLASH…

* * *

The world flashed back into view. The wyverns were closing in with horrific speed. Suu was nowhere to be seen. A faint echo of what sounded like Rayce's scream reached his ears. There was no hope…no hope at all.

One of the white cards he was carrying suddenly dropped out of his pocket. Out of reflex, he reached out for it and grabbed it. He gasped as a set of words showed up on the card in graceful kanji. 'Entrust your life to me. I shall be your shield.'

"Huh?" was the only sound Takato could make before the card shone bright.

"Hey…you up there…I'm telling you…I don't taste too good. I'm an ethereal spiritual semi-existent guardian. It's…it means…great, what a day to forget the dictionary…." Rayce muttered, as he tried to negotiate his way out from between the wyvern's fangs and its incisors. "Huh?" He tried to shield his face as a sharp wind blew from behind the wyvern's back. Not that he was worried that any sand or dust may get in his eyes. It was just that the wind was blowing the wyvern's smelly breath into his face.

Below, Motoko had to try her best to dig her feet into the snow to keep herself from being thrown off balance by the sudden fierce gust of wind.

"You saved my life many times in the past…now it's my turn…" Takato heard a quiet, gentle voice say amidst the storming wind. He tried to open his eyes, but the storming winds stung them.

He did, however, catch a glimpse of what seemed to be light reflecting off the surface of a well-polished katana, as well as what seemed to be the flowing fabric of a school uniform.

Takato tried to shield his eyes as he looked down at the card. A picture had appeared on it. He gasped. "An angel?"

To be continued…


End file.
